


to all the girls i've sung about

by andsmile



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: (as usual), Alternate Universe - Normal High School, Archie Andrews Needs a Hug, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Multi, Riverdale Sans Murder and Trauma, TATBILB - Riverdale Version, Teen Romance, Varchie!Centric, idiots to lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-11
Updated: 2019-07-25
Packaged: 2020-01-11 20:57:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 80,176
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18431969
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/andsmile/pseuds/andsmile
Summary: When the love songs he wrote get leaked, Archie Andrews finds himself making a deal so the girl-next-door doesn't start believing that he has feelings for her.Or, an archieronnie AU based on the book/movie, "To All The Boys I've Loved Before".





	1. Chapter 1

_damn all these beautiful girls,_  
_they only wanna do you dirt_

 

::  
::  
::

 

Monday mornings are complicated. That’s one universal truth.

When his cell phone alarm goes off, it feels impossible to get out of bed and get ready for school. Archie presses the snooze button and hides his face on his pillow, praying that the extra five minutes will somehow help him get through the day.

Archie feels like he’s _almost_ diving back into a deep slumber when the alarm goes off, _again_. He groans and means to press the snooze button, _again_ , when he hears his door opening.

“Okay, sleepyhead. If you press this button one more time and all the extra energy makes you late for school, you’ll be breaking rocks with me next weekend,” he hears his father say.

He considers the pros and cons of that option for a second, as his dad leaves the room, when suddenly familiar a weight jolts his mattress and he’s kissed good morning on the side of his face — a wet, cold, sniffy nose and tickling whiskers. “ _Ugh_ ,” Archie groans but then laughs, trying to hide his cheeks from what’s coming next. “Vegas, get down!”

The labrador, of course, doesn’t obey him and keeps sniffing around his ears. Archie has no choice but to move, sitting up to scratch Vegas’s ears. “Good morning to you too, bud.”

His dad yells from the kitchen, reminding him that he needs to be ready in thirty, including eating breakfast, if he wants a ride to school. Vegas runs off when he hears the word _breakfast_ , leaving Archie alone to his morning routine that consists of checking his phone, showering, and wondering for five whole minutes if he is or isn’t taking his guitar to school.

Archie’s in the middle of that choice, scratching his chin, when he decides to glance through his window into the room of the house next door. Betty is putting her books in her blue, floral backpack, her ponytail perky as usual. She’s wearing a mint cardigan over a white t-shirt, and by the way her lips are moving, he thinks she’s singing something. He feels a soft smile tugging at his lips, wondering what song.

Suddenly, Archie decides not to take the guitar and finishes getting ready way faster than he intended — Betty always got her backpack when she was about to leave for school, so if he ran a little, maybe he could catch up with her and they could walk to school together instead of him getting a ride.

“Dad! I have to run,” Archie announces, going into the kitchen and grabbing some toast that was waiting for him on a plate. Fred, who had been frying some bacon, turns around, frowning. “I forgot I have this thing with Coach Clayton, so I’ll just get go—”

He pauses mid-sentence when he hears the distant roar of a motorcycle. It quickly gets louder before it stops. Archie clenches his jaw, his face getting slightly warm — _idiot_ , he thinks. He had momentarily forgotten about that. Jughead always takes Betty to school on Mondays, and more often than not he’s been doing it on his dad’s motorbike.

“Shouldn’t you get going, then?” Fred asks, watching Archie stand in the middle of the kitchen with an uneaten piece of toast in his hand and a forlorn expression on his face.

“It’s tomorrow,” he makes up, a little defeated. He can sense his father’s confusion. “That’s what happens when I can’t sleep my extra five minutes.”

Fred chuckles, turning his attention back to the frying pan, and Archie decides to sit down and eat his breakfast. He can hear the motorbike engine running again and can only picture in his mind what he has seen so many times, now — Betty with her knees resting on Jughead’s hips, her arms around his torso, and her head hidden by the helmet marked with a crown.

 

 

 

 

 

It wasn’t _always_ like that.

Betty Cooper, the girl next door, is Jughead Jones’s girlfriend. But before she was Jughead’s girlfriend, she was Archie’s best friend. To be fair, before being her boyfriend, Jughead was _also_ Archie’s best friend. They were inseparable as kids — “ _the three musketeers,”_ Archie’s mom used to say when she was still around and prepared them snacks for when they returned from their adventures. _“Always together.”_

Everything kind of changed the summer before sophomore year, when Betty’s siblings _rebelled._

Well, Archie isn’t sure if _rebelled_ is the right term, but it was the term his dad used back then. Chic, the oldest sibling, came out of the closet during a family dinner and announced that he was moving to the big city so he could _find himself_. He did move out _very fast,_ and not many days later, Polly, who was about to be a junior, announced that she got _pregnant_ by her boyfriend, Jason Blossom.

Things got _really_ messed up then — Archie still remembers all the drama happening next door, the sound of glass shattering, yelling, and girls crying. In the end, the Coopers shipped Betty to stay with her grandparents in Florida until _everything was taken care of_ , and Polly was accompanied by Alice Cooper to an abortion clinic in Greendale.

Archie got a couple of texts from Betty explaining the situation and saying that she’d only be back on the last day of summer. And when Betty disappeared, so did Jughead, although in an unrelated situation — he got a scholarship for a writing program in Connecticut that would last almost two months — the _three musketeers_ faced their first summer apart.

Their separation changed things. Archie spent a lot of time working on the construction site with his dad, a lot of time at the gym getting ready for varsity football, a lot of time tossing balls around with that other kid from school, Reggie Mantle — who was always taking him to stranger’s house parties, too — and a lot, _a lot_ , of time, thinking about girls.

He couldn’t help it. Perhaps it was the golden air of summer, but all those girls were suddenly _so_ pretty. The way their hair fell over their shoulders, their legs in skirts and denim shorts, their smiles, and the way they smelled — Archie often found himself watching them when he went swimming at the waterhole with Reggie or laughing at the things they said even if they weren’t that funny.

Girls seemed to like him too, for some reason. Archie _knew_ that he had gained some weight and his arms and legs had filled out. He had looked at himself in the mirror to notice muscles and lines _appearing_ on his torso, but he also thought girls liked him even more because 1) he could play the guitar and, 2) he was always trying to _be a gentleman_ , like his dad taught him.

(Well, Reggie wasn’t _always_ a gentleman and girls seemed to like him too, but not the same way they liked Archie. Girls were always mad at Reggie after a while.)

Mid-July, Reggie got them invited to one of the parties at Thornhill, the Blossom family house. They blended quickly with the other kids, who were all a year older, especially because Reggie somehow got his hands on a stash of weed and decided to make some money out of it. Archie didn’t _endorse_ that but also couldn’t find anything to say about it — he just really hoped his dad wouldn’t find out.

They were at the party for a couple of hours when Cheryl Blossom, Jason’s twin sister, approached Archie. She was a redhead like him and she had a thing for wearing red — red dress, red lipstick, and red nails. Her smile was icy and dangerous when she said _hello_ and offered him a drink.

“Not this cheap-ass beer,” she said, raising an eyebrow at the red solo cup Archie showed her. “Come with me.”

He followed her up the staircase, his palms sweaty. She had miles of milky white legs, and Archie had always thought she was a little _scary_. But when they reached the second floor and she curled her fists around his shirt and pushed him against a wall, her mouth crashing on his, Archie wasn’t scared _at all_.

They didn’t go any further than second-base — to be honest, _she_ was the one grabbing his hand to place it on her breast, but as soon as he did it she pushed him away and decided to stop their make-out session. Cheryl went back to the party and ignored him after that, but Archie could still feel it, the taste of her cherry chapstick — such a cliché and yet, so sweet.

Back home later on that evening, half-tipsy, Archie got his guitar and, without thinking about anything but Cheryl’s mouth on his, experimented with chords and words.

 _cherry red, sweeter than the honeycomb,  
__sweeter still when we’re alone._  

He spent the following weeks perfecting the song. Every now and then, he’d see Cheryl driving around in her red car or getting milkshakes at Pop’s with one of her friends or Jason.

(Apparently, no one else knew what went down with Jason and Polly earlier in the summer, but Archie always thought it was unfair that he got to run around town while she was still locked up in her house. It made Archie wonder if Jason even _knew_ he almost had a baby.)

Archie went to other parties that summer and definitely kissed other girls, but every time he’d come back home, it was Cheryl Blossom on his mind, wearing a red bikini top under a denim jacket, bending over with her mouth around the milkshake straw, _almost_ glancing back at him every time.

_cherry red, my cherry red_  
_i wonder why_  
_she’s true to me  
_ _the way that she will always be_

Archie thought the song was good — good enough to maybe _woo_ her. He had a whole plan: he created a YouTube Channel, _Red8532_ , sat by his window with the sunlight streaming in, and recorded himself while playing the song. He named the video _To Cheryl_ and uploaded it. He was about to publish it when the gods of public humiliation stopped him. He decided to post it as _unlisted_ and send the link to her whenever he felt brave enough.

The video was sitting on his channel for two weeks when Reggie came into Pop’s with a Cheshire cat smile on his face and gave him the newest gossip: Cheryl Blossom was seen kissing a girl in the Twilight Drive-In. _Tongue and all._

Archie felt his face heat up, equally disappointed and turned on by the news. “Wait. So, she doesn’t like boys?”

Reggie shrugged and stole the cherry from the top of his sundae, quite literally. “She seemed to like _me_ when she kissed me back in her party.”

That day, Archie came back home feeling like an idiot. He was about to delete the video (and maybe his whole channel) when a text notification popped up. It was Betty, saying that she was having some fun in Florida, although the heat was unbearable, and that she missed him. There was a picture, too, of her at Disneyland hugging Minnie, her face red from the sun and her hair even blonder.

Archie smiled. He wished Betty was around so he could tell her about what went down with Cheryl, so they could drink vanilla milkshakes at Pop’s. Maybe he would even show Betty the song he spent the past few weeks composing, like the stupid fool he was. Betty would give good criticism. She’d appreciate it.

 ** _miss u too,_** he typed back.

 

 

 

 

 

When Betty returned to Riverdale, one day before sophomore year started, Cheryl had already been buried deep in the back of his mind. Archie felt ready to start a new school year, to focus on varsity football and maybe take a music class — his dad thought it would be good for him to nail all the extracurricular points. It was nice to see Betty’s lights on again, after they were off the whole summer — he could see, from his window, that she was chatting on bed with Kevin Keller, while fixing up her blonde ponytail.

He smiled to himself and, a minute later, texted her asking if she wanted to meet at Pop’s to catch up, a tradition they had at every summer’s ending. She said yes by giving him a thumbs up through the window, and Archie noticed that she and Kevin started giggling uncontrollably about something. He didn’t make much of it and proceeded to get ready.

About an hour later, Archie met her at Pop’s. It was nice to see her, to hug her — she smelled like the vanilla milkshake they ordered, and she looked good and tan, her green eyes glistening. She said it was great to be home, and somehow, being around her, felt like he was also coming home too, coming back to normal after the summer he spent having Reggie Mantle as his wingman.

Betty smiled sweetly while she told him tales about Florida, about how _crazy_ her parents were acting, about her plans for this year. Archie told her things too, things about how he spent his summer (some details left out), about practicing a lot so he could get into varsity football, and about how he had been writing song lyrics and that maybe music was something he could see himself doing, in the future. Betty beamed, then.

“I’d love to hear them,” she said, resting her chin on her hand. “Your songs!”

“Cool.” Archie smiled back. He only had one song written, but maybe he could change the title from _To Cheryl_ to _Cherry Red_ or something. Betty wouldn’t really know or guess who he had been singing about. “I’ll work on some demos tonight.”

“Also, I’ve been thinking about us, Archie, and our friendship…”

The bell at the front door chimed in, then, distracting Archie from whatever Betty was trying to say. Archie never understood why he felt the need to see who was walking in, but he lifted his head up and realized that he couldn’t pay attention to Betty again — that he couldn’t pay attention to anything except for the girl who just walked in.

 _Holy fucking shit_ was the only thought that reverberated in his head for a while.

 

 

 

 

 

Sometimes Archie thinks that the Cooper siblings _rebelling_ was a turning point on his life, but if he _really_ stops to analyze it, the real turning point might have been when Veronica Lodge moved to town and went to pick up an order at Pop’s. She ordered two burgers and fries but left with onion rings because he said they were good. She said she was new to town, smiling with her lips painted red — a different shade from the lipstick he kissed on Cheryl’s lips — and that she had just moved from New York.

Everything about her was _different_. Exciting, a glimpse of _something_ in that never-changing town. For starters, she was wearing a _cape_. And heels. And she was _the most beautiful girl_ he’d ever seen, because calling her _the prettiest_ wouldn’t be enough. They met and talked for five minutes about essentially nothing, but Archie was itching to go home and start writing a song about her.

For some reason that Archie didn’t know back then, Betty ended their dinner as soon as the girl said she needed to leave. Archie thought that it was weird, because her milkshake was still unfinished and she had half a burger left, but asked if she wanted him to walk her home. She shook her head vehemently, saying that she’d see him tomorrow, and he just watched as she walked away in a hurry. Maybe her mom was pestering her about being out late the night before school, or something.

Archie tried to finish her food, but he couldn’t. Her vanilla milkshake was too sweet, and his stomach was buzzing. He couldn’t stop thinking about Veronica Lodge from New York City, and he even asked Pop’s for a pen so he could scribble something on a napkin.

_all i know is a simple name  
_ _and everything has changed_

Yes. Veronica Lodge walking into his life was _definitely_ the turning point.

 

 

 

 

 

He _tried_ not to be creepy and stare at Veronica during their first week back to school. But she quickly befriended Betty, even pushing her to be a part of the cheerleader tryouts, and Archie was always with Betty, so he ended up always being around her. And then it was really hard to not stare, because she looked so _good_ in the different clothes she wore, with that black hair falling down her shoulders. She was also weirdly _sweet_ to him, like she really enjoyed talking to him. He had plenty of attention from girls during the summer, but it was somewhat _different_ — Veronica seemed like she actually wanted to hear what he had to _say_ , and that’s something he only experienced before with Betty.

Maybe that should’ve been his first sign, but it wasn’t. He was so stupid. So, so, _so_ stupid. Because not a week later, ar the Back to School Dance, Betty stood with her arms around his neck, wearing a pretty pink dress, and confessed that she had dreams about them being a couple. She looked into his eyes while saying it, and all he could think of was _what._

He couldn’t see it, couldn’t understand it. What he felt for her was not what you’re supposed to feel. What he felt was nothing like what he felt for other girls — for any other girl — and it was _definitely_ different from what he felt for Veronica Lodge the moment he laid eyes on her.

Betty looked hurt. Archie was confused. They ended up at a party hosted by the Blossom twins — a party they only went to because Polly _demanded_ Betty went with her, otherwise their mom wouldn’t allow her to go. Archie was Betty’s date, so he felt the need to be there even though all he wanted to do was to _leave_. It was awkward, him and Betty standing next to each other, overly dressed up without exchanging a word, but then Cheryl _had_ to remember he existed and demanded that they played Seven Minutes in Heaven with the other sophomores and juniors.

It might've been _fine_ except Reggie Mantle was also playing, and that meant he would never get out of this unscarred. Veronica, who he hadn’t seen since she was dancing with Kevin Keller back at school, was also in the circle. She looked so startlingly beautiful in her little black dress. Archie felt guilty for thinking these things when his _best friend_ had just confessed her need for something else and he couldn’t say anything.

“It’s game time at Chez Blossom, kiddies.” Cheryl announced. Archie couldn’t _believe_ the mess he was getting into. He also couldn’t understand _how_ , a few weeks ago, he was infatuated with that girl when she was the actual devil. “Who wants to tryst in the closet of love first? My vote is _A,_ for _Archie_. Anyone care to second that?”

He tried to say _no._ But then Reggie was smashing his arm, saying _YES, Andrews, yes,_ and everyone except for Betty (and maybe Veronica) was laughing. When Cheryl set the bottle on the table, all Archie could hope for was that it didn’t fall on Betty. If he was forced to spend seven minutes with her inside a closet, he would be forced to _talk_ , to say things he didn’t understand, to explain why he couldn’t see them as _a power couple_ , or _maybe just a couple_.

In retrospect, fate helped him with that one, but not quite. The bottle didn’t point to Betty, but to _Veronica_ , and Archie realized he had even little less of an idea as to what he’d do, stuck inside a closet for seven minutes with _her_.

Long story, short: she kissed him. _Okay,_ maybe _he_ kissed her. But it wasn’t like he could help it. One minute she was talking about New York and then they started talking about feelings, about _love_ , and her eyes were so dark, and her lashes were so thick when she looked up at him. Her lip gloss was shining in the blue light of his cell phone screen, and Archie thought — he _honestly_ thought — that maybe if he kissed her, it would help to clear up the mess that was going on inside his head ever since Betty said those things at the dance. It was like the whole world was on fire and tasting Veronica’s mouth would be the only way to quiet the humming in his chest.

It did clear his head for five minutes or so, but it filled it with different concerns.

He was completely out of breath when it ended. _Stunned._ Veronica did look dazed too, and for one moment, Archie thought she would kiss him again. But instead, she just started _moving_ , trying to fix the mess that was her hair and her dress. Archie’s hands and neck were sweaty. His heart was skipping beats.

“Nailed it!” Reggie cheered when they got out of the closet, a good minute later than they were supposed to.

“Where’s Betty?” Veronica asked. Only then, Archie realized what had just happened — he kissed his best friend’s friend while trying to figure out if he could ever give an answer to his best friend about her feelings for him.

And, as Cheryl said, she spiraled and fled.

“We messed up,” Veronica told him.

And he knew she was right.

 

 

 

 

 

He found Betty, later, at her door. His head was still spinning from what happened in the closet, but he knew he needed to face her. He _owed_ her an explanation. 

“I’m not gonna ask what you did with Veronica at Cheryl’s,” she said. Her green eyes were full of tears, and Archie _hated_ that he was the one to make her cry. He never thought he’d ever have that power. He had always made her _smile_ , and that was— “I’m asking you now, right now, if you love me, Archie. Or even like me.”

“Of course, I love you, Betty,” he said, almost immediately. There was _no doubt_ of that. She was his best friend. He loved her like family, loved her almost more than everyone else he knew. But his heart was _still_ beating in a weird way and he couldn’t _lie_ to her, even though he wanted to, if only not to see her cry. “But I can’t give you the answer you want.”

“Why?” she asked. She sounded so sure of her feelings, and Archie felt _so_ stupid for never noticing, for missing the moment her eyes started to look at him differently. He wished he could give her a real reason, like what he had told Veronica back in the closet.

 _Because I don’t think I’ve ever felt that before_.

He swallowed hard and searched for the right words because he didn’t want to hurt her even more. “I don’t think I’m good enough for you,” he confessed. Perhaps, that was partially true. “I don’t think I’ll ever be good enough for you.”

Of course, it backfired.

The tears started to fall down her face, and Archie felt like someone was crushing his bones. She turned around, not saying a word, and walked back into her house, the house that had always been next to his.

In his room, later, he tried to write a song about Betty, about the way she shut her curtains, the way her green eyes cried. When he couldn’t, he tried to keep writing that upbeat song about Veronica that he started a week ago, but it felt too optimistic after what happened.

He gave up strumming on his guitar for a while.

 

 

 

 

 

On the following Monday, Archie saw them both at school. Betty was still avoiding him, purposely spending the whole day inside the Blue and Gold office (with Jughead, who apparently knew nothing about their mess of a weekend), but Veronica walked up to him, wearing her cheer practice uniform, her chin tilted up.

“I know I just met Betty,” she said without warning, and Archie could swear her bottom lip was quivering, “but I feel like we’re meant to be best friends. Like it’s our destiny. And, as much as I enjoyed our— _thing_ , the other night, if Betty doesn’t want me to talk to you anymore, I’m—”

Archie frowned. “Did she ask that?”

“No,” Veronica breathed, “but if that’s what it takes for her to forgive me for kissing the boy she likes, I’ll do it.”

Archie nodded. He was slightly disappointed, even though he had no right to be — he, too, would do anything that Betty asked him to if that meant she’d forgive him. Spending the weekend facing her closed window was _horrible_. “Okay. I understand.”

“We were nothing, but two foolish people consumed by desire, and I’m glad we’re on the same page about this.”

The way she said it, overly confident and with her voice in a slightly higher-pitch, made Archie smile and wonder if they _were_ indeed on the same page about this. Not that he had any say in the matter. “We could be friends?” he tried, questioning if that was a smart move. Somehow, he just didn’t want to miss her, to be forever deprived of the way she talked and laughed. For better or for worse, he had never met anyone like her before.

“Not now,” she answered promptly, but then she smiled, before walking away. “But we will be.”

Archie felt himself smiling back.

 

 

 

 

 

Betty forgave Veronica first, for some reason. Archie watched them walk with their arms linked in the hallways, and he didn’t care. He was glad for them.

Slowly but surely, his friendship with Betty was mended too. She started asking him questions again and even agreed to walk to school with him every once in a while. He was happy to have Betty back in his life — not only did he missed her deeply, but it also meant that he had Veronica back, too, somehow, even though she was now notoriously dating a junior named Chuck Clayton. And if Archie was still (only sometimes) hung up on the moment they shared in the closet, it was about time he stopped.

(So, he did. It’s not like he could allow himself to fall for her.)

Archie saw everything else play out in front of him: everyday, Betty would invite Jughead to have lunch with them. Everyday, Veronica would roll her eyes. Everyday, Jughead would say something that would make Betty laugh, in a weird, special way that Archie thought he recognized. Everyday, Veronica would lift an eyebrow towards her friend. Archie saw it all play out, but he only _understood it_ when, at the Valentine’s Day dance, Jughead asked if it would be okay to take Betty as his date.

Archie was quite surprised, but he said it was okay. It _was_ okay. Betty had laid out her feelings for him and he said _no_.  How could it _not_ be okay? He was taking Valerie Brown to the Valentine’s Day dance. He had no reason to protest: he had kissed someone else the very same night Betty told him she loved him, and he spent _months_ thinking about this someone else after walking away from Betty. And he loved Betty and Jughead so much — he wanted them to be happy. Jughead probably deserved Betty in ways Archie never did.

Archie saw it all play out right in front of him. And Betty Cooper, the girl next door, became Jughead Jones’s girlfriend.

 

 

 

 

 

Fred drives Archie to school. The sun is peeking through the clouds, signaling that they’re almost rid of that long, frozen winter. His dad pulls the truck over as other juniors get out of their own cars in the parking lot. “You could be driving yourself to school if you found the time to fix your grandpa’s car.”

Oh, yes. The _Pontiac Firebird_ forever stuck in their garage, an ice-blue relic from the seventies. It would be _awesome_ to drive that car to school, except Archie would have to give up some hours of many weekends to get it running again. Archie wishes they could just _buy_ a car that was already functioning — Reggie’s dad had a dealership, and he could probably find one for a good price. But his dad is crazy about that old Firebird, and Archie knows that he isn’t going to get any new wheels if he doesn’t work for it, one way or another.

His thoughts are interrupted again by the motorbike’s roar that comes from somewhere, and then it increases, until Jughead parks right in front of Fred’s truck, Betty hopping off quickly. They left Elm Street almost ten minutes earlier than Archie, but probably stopped at Pop’s for some coffee — Archie watches as Betty takes off the helmet, giving it back to Jughead and leaning down to kiss him on the lips.

“You know,” he hears Fred mention casually from the driver’s seat, “maybe Betty could help you fix it. She’s good with this stuff.”

“Yeah,” Archie heaves a frustrated breath, his eyes following the bounce of Betty’s ponytail as she runs into school, “maybe. See you later, Dad!”

Jughead is about to turn on his bike again when Archie gets out of the truck, waving a hand at him.

“Hey, man. How’s it going?” Jughead stops with his foot on the pedal, taking off the helmet that was on Betty’s head before, thick black hair flying around his face. Archie misses the stinky beanie he used to wear _before._

( _before_ junior year started and Jughead’s father was _arrested_ for dealing drugs on the Southside before his mom _fled_ with his little sister to some place in California and Jughead entered the system, adopted by a foster family who enrolled him into Southside High.)

“Everything’s great.” Archie says, smiling a little, not knowing what to say. Things have been so different, lately. Jughead looks like the guy he once was, but he also _doesn’t_ — he wears leather jackets now, and Archie thinks that he might be picking up some fights because his knuckles are always kind of purple. Jughead Jones, who Archie used to defend all the time as a little kid. “I haven’t seen you around.”

“Yeah, I’m kinda avoiding the Northside, these days,” he confesses, and Archie can’t blame him. _Months_ later, everyone still only sees him as the _drug dealer’s_ spawn. “I’m just here to drop off Betty, so…”

 _Everyone_ except for Betty, of course, who stood by him and fought for him through everything, and fought her parents endlessly so she could _keep on_ dating him even after everything went down. And Archie, yeah, Archie also doesn’t see him as anyone but his childhood friend, although he does hope that Jughead isn’t getting Betty into any sort of dangerous situations.

Archie nods. “Let’s meet at Pop’s some time, catch up?”

Jughead smiles, “Sure. And here comes Reggie Mantle,” he breathes, placing the helmet over his head again, “my cue to leave.”

 

 

 

 

 

Reggie greets him like he usually does: two pats on his back and a comment about something. This Monday, of course, the comment is the fact he’d been talking to Jughead Jones, who just left on his motorbike, turning everyone’s heads in the Riverdale High parking lot. “Dude, I can’t believe you still have the hots for Wednesday Addams.”

“Dude.” Archie rolls his eyes. Reggie was one of the kids that picked on Jughead once upon a time, before FP Jones became _dangerous_. “Shut up.”

“Whatever. I have important information to tell you.” Reggie squeezes his shoulder, and then lowers his voice, looking around to make sure no one is listening to him. “About the big plan. OSB.”

Archie frowns. “What the hell are you going on about?”

“Operation Spring Break, man. Jesus, you’re too slow.” Reggie makes a face. Archie swears it’s the first time he’s ever heard about this but still raises his eyebrows, allowing his friend to carry on. “It’s our first spring break trip. It’s going to be legendary. We’re leaving the morning after the dance, and we’re gonna bring our girlfriends with us.”

“Reg,” Archie scratches the back of his head, “I’m sorry to be the one to break it to you, but— we’re both single, man.”

“We’re single right _now_ , Archibald. That’s what OSB is all about.” Reggie swings an arm around Archie’s shoulder. “We have a little over two months to make it happen. You just have to pick your poison.” He steers Archie towards their school’s entrance, where a group of girls from their year is entering. “I’m going for Josie McCoy,” Reggie says. Archie creases his forehead, eyeing the girl Reggie just mentioned. Josie has dark, flawless skin and the voice of an angel. “I think you should try for Melody.”

Melody Valentine has her arm linked with Josie’s, her big black curls bouncing as they walk into school. They’re both wearing their cat ears, since they’re part of the school’s resident band, Josie and the Pussycats. The Pussycats were once a trio, but ever since Valerie was accepted to an important music program in California last fall, they’ve been missing one member (or _one kitty_ , like Kevin Keller liked to say).

Archie bites the inside of his mouth — thinking about Val is really bittersweet, now. “I think I should stay away from my ex’s best friends.”

Reggie heaves out an annoyed sigh. “Then pick someone else!” He lets Archie go as they start walking into school too. The bell for first period is about to ring. “I’m serious, Arch. I’m worried about you.”

“Why the hell would you be worried about me?” Archie asks, stopping in front of his locker.

“Listen, I get that Val left, and you got sad and all,” Reggie says, and then takes a step closer to Archie as he starts to unlock his combination lock. “But you haven’t gotten any action ever since, dude,” Reggie finishes, lowering his voice.

Archie chuckles, feeling his face heat up. Well, _technically_ , Reggie was right. Valerie, the missing kitty, was Archie’s first (and, to be honest, only) real girlfriend. They started dating around the same time Betty and Jughead became official — they got closer when Archie joined the music studies class, and they definitely had a connection. She was so pretty, with her warm brown skin and sparkly green eyes. He missed her a lot at first, when she was gone, after having spent the whole summer together, either watching movies at the drive-in or pressed against his plaid sheets, but he was also very happy that she could follow her dreams.

It really sucked to say goodbye. He wrote a song for her a week after she left, the third to be uploaded to his channel, unlisted, of course, naming it _To Valerie_.

_thinking back to every night_  
_that we just laid there for a while  
_ _i never thought i’d say goodbye_

He wanted to send the link to her, but he didn’t — it felt like _closure_ , somehow. It was then that Archie realized that, somehow, all the songs he had written were more for himself than for anyone else. He had felt a bunch of very real, and different, things for the girls he dedicated the lyrics to, but he didn't think _they’d_ get it if they ever listened to them.

“I’m just…” Archie starts, putting his blue and yellow letterman jacket on. “Not really looking for anything, right now.”

“It’s okay if you’re not looking _for_ anything, but you should be looking _forward_ to OSB.” Reggie pats his back again. “I spot my mission alone by the water fountain, by the way.” He nods in that direction, and Archie turns his head to see Josie leaning down to drink water. “We’ll discuss this later,” he says, fixing his black hair and leaving Archie behind.

Archie snorts as he watches Reggie approach Josie and then resumes grabbing the books he’ll need for his classes. He hadn’t really listened to a word Reggie said about OSB, but he does miss having a girlfriend. Having someone by his side in a booth at Pop’s, spending quiet time together, feeling sweet perfume as he peppers kisses down someone’s neck. Having a partner, a best friend.

Somehow, the image of Betty leaning down to kiss Jughead goodbye marches into his brain. Archie feels his stomach flip and shakes his head, closing his locker as the bell rings.

 

 

 

 

 

Archie’s by himself in the student lounge just after lunch, headphones on, considering taking a nap before he has to attend his afternoon classes, when Veronica walks in, talking to someone on the phone. She’s wearing one of the seventeen skirts Archie has seen her in ever since they got back from the holidays, and it’s one of his favorites, a black and yellow checkered, plaid skirt that just looks _great_ on her.

He admires her for a second, while she hasn’t noticed he’s there — while he’s looking, he realizes that she doesn’t seem very happy with the conversation she’s having. Archie instinctively removes his headphones.

“ _Sure_ , Chuck, of course you have something else to do,” he hears her say, at the same time that she turns around and catches him watching her. Veronica’s expression shifts from annoyed to soft, suddenly, and Archie feels immediately bad for eavesdropping. He can’t help his inquisitive expression. “I don’t— yeah, _whatever_. I’m going to hang up, now,” she announces, shaking her head as if to tell Archie not to worry. “Bye.”

“Everything alright?” he asks, because he feels like he should. They’re friends. _Friendly_. It’s been a million years since everything went down between him and Veronica, and a little while since he has effectively _stopped_ feeling flushed every time they interacted.

It was much (much) harder during sophomore year, before Valerie, and sometimes even during Valerie, but now that they’re halfway through junior year, he can finally say that the incredible happened. He is probably the first (and only) guy on Earth that successfully got over Veronica Lodge.

She sits down on the couch across from him, crossing her legs and sighing. “Everything is just fine,” she says, pasting a smile on her face that he knows is fake. It does turn more real when Archie lifts his eyebrow, and she ends up chuckling. “I don’t have classes this afternoon today. Chuck said he’d pick me up, but apparently he _can’t_.” She shrugs. “ _Men._ ”

Archie chuckles too. Besides the one time they kissed, and Betty was heartbroken, Archie doesn’t think that he’s ever seen Veronica _down_ about anything. She has a lingering smile on her berry painted lips when she fumbles with her hair and looks down at her phone again. There’s a beat of silence, and Archie presses his lips together, wondering if he should say something to defend his kind. “Do you need anything?” he ends up asking. Not that he has much to offer, since he doesn’t have a car to drive her home, but he figures it’s better than saying _not all men—_.

Veronica looks up from her phone. “A cup of coffee about the size of my head,” she says. “And a woman,” she adds, making Archie laugh. She ends up laughing too, her eyes crinkling. “You should get going. The bell is going to ring in about two minutes, and I know it’s a long way to lab.”

“Ugh.” Archie tilts his head back, sinking it into the couch cushion. She’s probably right. Mrs. Lilah, the biology teacher, was known to take points from students who got to her class late — Archie had the impression that she did it on purpose, knowing that her classroom was the furthest from the student lounge. He considers not going for a moment, and then a thought crosses through his mind, making him frown. “How did you know I have lab now?”

“Because I watch your every move,” she says, in a sultry voice, looking at him with one kinked eyebrow. Archie parts his lips, and Veronica laughs again when she catches his weirded-out expression. He can’t prevent the blood from rushing to his cheeks. “You have your biology book in your lap, silly.”

Archie shakes his head, amused, noticing that he _indeed_ had his book on him the whole time. He heaves out a breath, gathering enough strength to get up. As soon as he’s on his feet, the bell rings, and he’s _definitely_ going to be late. “Shit, I have to run,” he tells her. “See you, Ronnie.”

He can’t help but glance at her over his shoulder, when he’s about to leave through the student lounge door. Veronica is still looking at him, and she gives him a pretty smile, raising a hand to wave goodbye.

 

 

 

 

 

Archie might be the first and only guy on Earth that ever got over Veronica Lodge, but that doesn’t mean it was an easy task. Because that’s _exactly_ what getting over her felt like: a _task_. Like doing his homework, finishing drills at football practice, or walking Vegas, it was something he _had_ to do. It was his responsibility, not to get involved, not to fall for her.

They had known each other for a _week,_ and they’d shared _one kiss_. But it was like a whirlwind — unexpected, terrifying, leaving nothing but destruction behind. Veronica made it very clear that she was going to choose Betty over anything, or anyone, and Archie was glad that she was the one to make that choice, because she gave him no other option. Of course never hurting Betty ever again was his priority, too, but he thinks that it would’ve been much more difficult to remember that if Veronica had taken another direction.

Not that she _would_ have taken that direction. She told him she’d enjoyed their _moment_ , but enjoying wasn’t enough to make her want something else. Why would the most beautiful girl Archie has ever laid eyes on ever want something with _him_ , of all people? She was _way_ out of his league. She was way too much.

The first weeks after the Back to School dance, Archie tried to teach himself not to look for her first thing in the morning, and to stop his heart from beating faster when she was looking particularly beautiful. From a distance, it was easier — she could be just the unattainable, gorgeous new girl, someone who he had never dreamed of meeting before.

He only realized the big trouble he was in _after_. After Betty forgave her, after Betty forgave _him_ , after Veronica became an actual part of his daily life.

That’s when things got _bad_.

She’d say good morning tucking her hair behind her ear. She’d wear miniskirts and heels and dresses, and her _legs_. The way her body fit perfectly in _everything_ she wore. The sound of her laughter and the way she talked about things — always so passionate, always so smart. Veronica was careful around him, but she was taking to heart the promise she’d made of one day becoming his friend, and Archie didn’t think he could ever regret something more, because every smile she gave him hit him with a wave of _something_.

Sometimes, at night, he gave into the memories of them together in that closet, the burning sensation of her lips on his, of their tongues together. And then he felt _so guilty_ afterwards, when he glanced over and noticed that Betty’s curtains were open because she decided to trust him again and to give another shot at their friendship.

One day, they were having lunch in the student lounge — he, Kevin, Betty, and Veronica, and Archie kept looking at the girls and noticing all the ways they were different — when Betty asked if Veronica wanted to go to her house later.

“I can’t. I’ve got a date tonight,” she casually dropped, like it meant nothing.

“You do?” Archie heard himself asking, a crease between his eyebrows. Kevin chimed in, interested, asking who. She pointed discreetly at Chuck Clayton, the junior from the football team who all the girls swooned over. Betty congratulated her, Kevin said that Chuck was _the hottest of hot,_ and it didn’t matter that Archie felt like sinking into the couch and disappearing.

He knew, then: the _infatuation_ had to end, somehow. He knew that. It didn’t matter how many times Veronica winked at him, smiled at him, got close enough to him so he could smell her perfume — he _needed_ to get over her, one way or another.

A little before he began to think differently about Val, and Veronica was always holding hands with Chuck in the hallways or kissing him before football games, Archie sat down in his room with his guitar and his notebook and started writing another song. It took him five months to finish, to pour everything he was feeling into pieces of lyrics scribbled here and there, on his textbooks, on his notebooks, in his mind.

_the world was on fire and no one could save me but you  
_ _strange what desire can make foolish people do_

It took Archie five months to finish writing the song. It was the second he ever uploaded to his channel, and it was _so different_ from the first one to Cheryl — sadder, darker. He was a little embarrassed by it, by the _honesty_ , by the depth, of singing to a camera _this girl is only gonna break your heart_. But as soon as the song was up and he named it _To Veronica_ , he felt like he had accomplished something important.

_no, i don’t wanna fall in love  
with you._

It wasn’t an easy task, but he did it.

 

 

 

 

 

Betty has been his biology partner ever since they were eleven. 

She was his partner when they did a test to find out their blood type — he _couldn’t_ poke her index finger with a needle, so she did it herself. They were really excited to discover that she was B (for Betty) and he was A (for Archie). She was his partner when they learned about birth control and how to roll a condom on a banana, which was the most embarrassing moment of Archie’s young life. She was his partner when they had to dissect a frog, and for the first time Archie was the one who got them a good grade.

Sitting to her right at the lab table as the teacher talks about _plants_ is completely familiar. Archie finds himself glancing over at her every now and then, her green eyes _focused_ on whatever Mrs. Lilah was saying, her lips rosy and glossed. He thinks she might be a little tired — there are slightly dark circles under her eyes. He wonders if her parents are still giving her a hard time about Jughead and his motorbike. About _Jughead_ , in general.

He never asks her about them. It’s some sort of rule he created inside his mind ever since he found out his two best friends were dating — he shouldn’t pry, shouldn’t take sides. If one of them wants to talk about it, he’ll listen, but it has never been the case. Betty and Jughead are _solid_ ; at least that’s how Valerie once described them. When they were the _three musketeers_ , everyone’s problems were everyone’s, but now, their problems aren’t Archie’s anymore.

“How can anyone have so much to say about plants?” Archie asks Betty when the bell rings and they’re finally released to go home. “I mean, they’re just plants.”

Betty’s putting her things in her backpack, and she throws him a look. “Tracheophytes are _so_ important, Arch. They conduct water and minerals through the—” she stops when he makes a face and ends up giggling. “Okay, okay. They’re just plants.”

They fall comfortably into step as they leave the classroom, Mrs. Lilah saying goodbye to Betty — everyone’s favorite student — and Archie rolling his eyes. “Is Jug picking you up?” he casually asks, shoving his hands into the pockets of his letterman jacket.

Betty shakes her head. “Not today. He’s trying to revive Southside High’s newspaper, so he’s staying after school, some days,” she tells him, her hand curling around the strap of her backpack, and Archie isn’t sure if she sounds proud or forlorn — maybe a little bit of both. He knows that after Jughead left, no one else wanted to join Betty to work on the Blue and Gold, and Principal Weatherbee shut down its activities.

“Sounds like him.” Archie smiles a little. It had never occurred to Archie how much his two best friends had in common, until they got together. He wishes he could’ve helped Betty with the newspaper, but he can barely write two paragraphs without falling asleep. “In that case, let’s walk home together?”

 

 

 

 

 

It’s nice to be by Betty’s side, enjoying the chilly late-winter breeze on his cheeks, walking down the street where they grew up. She tells him, in that quiet voice she always uses when she’s bringing up her own problems, like she doesn’t want to _disturb_ anyone with them; about how Polly got her acceptance letter to Dartmouth and how proud they all were — but it had doubled the pressure on Betty herself. Archie listens, nods, says that he’s sure she’s going to get into a kickass school when the time is right.

Betty gives him the warmest of smiles. He waits until she enters her house safely to go into his own home, and when he’s up in his room, he ends up glancing into her room through his window, watching as she falls down on bed with her phone in her hands.

The next morning, he catches her when she’s about to leave for school — Jughead doesn’t pick her up on Tuesdays.

“Good morning,” he says, smiling a little. She’s wearing her hair down today, blonde waves stopping at shoulder length. It’s a little colder today, and her coat is light pink.

“Morning, Arch.” She smiles too, locking the door behind her. “Are you walking to school?”

“Yep.” He nods. “Listen, I’ve been thinking— remember when you told me yesterday that you’ve got a bit of… free time, after Weatherbee shut down the Blue and Gold?”

She frowns as they start walking. “Yes.”

“So, my dad— this is totally up to you, by the way, and if you’re busy you can just say _no_ , but my dad said that if I got the Firebird up and running it could be mine. So, I was wondering if maybe you wanted to help me fix it?”

“The _Firebird_??” Betty stops him with a hand on his arm, her big, green eyes widening. It’s always been weird to Archie, how much of a gearhead Betty has always been, but it’s nice to see her surprised. “You want my help with your grandpa’s car?!”

“Well, _yeah_. I mean, _help_ is an understatement, since you’ll end up doing everything, but—”

“Oh, my God, Arch!” Betty basically _jumps_ to hug him, swinging her arms around his neck. Archie holds her, his hands resting on her waist. “That’s so cool! I’ve always loved that car. You know that!”

He does know that. Archie smiles with his chin against her shoulder, something he can’t pinpoint getting caught up in his throat. She’s also smiling when they pull apart. It feels like it’s been a while since he was the one to make her smile so brightly.

 

 

 

 

 

The week continues to be uneventful. Jughead takes Betty to school every day, but Archie doesn't meet up with them again. Archie spends his afternoons at football practice and then suffers through homework before dinner. He catches glimpses of Betty and Polly chatting away while sitting on Betty’s bed, and looks forward to Sunday afternoon, when he and Betty agreed to start working on the car.

Fred drives him to school on Friday. As soon as Archie is in the hallway, he notices that there’s something _going on_. A bunch of girls, including Cheryl Blossom, are together, giggling and talking in low voices, and some guys from the football team are gathered, laughing as they throw glances at a certain locker.

Veronica’s locker. She’s standing right in front of it, earbuds in her ears, and it doesn’t look like she has realized that everyone is talking about her. Archie frowns and approaches the one source of gossip he knows is trustable.

“Hey Kev,” he greets. Kevin Keller and Archie have known each other since forever, maybe the same amount of time he’s been friends with Betty and Jughead. “What’s going on?”

“Oh, you haven’t heard?” Kevin asks, closing his locker. “Veronica broke up with Chuck Clayton last night,” he says. It’s as casual as when Veronica announced she and Chuck were going on a date, a little over a year ago. Archie feels his jaw clench and doesn’t know what it means. “It was really dramatic. Apparently, she threw a milkshake in his face.”

Archie raises his eyebrows. “Wow.”

“Yep. Who would’ve thought Riverdale High’s resident IT-couple would be over months before prom?” Kevin sighs. “Who am I going to vote for King and Queen, now?”

He leaves shortly after saying that. Archie doesn’t really know what to think. _Everyone_ seemed to be talking about it, but Veronica was still alone, fumbling with the things in her locker. If she spent the whole evening crying, there was no sight of it; she looked as put together as usual, perfect makeup on her face, her hair as shiny as it had always been.

Archie watches her for a moment, considering not doing anything with this latest knowledge, but it bothers him that she might be upset and that no one seems to care. So, he heaves out a breath and decides to walk to her. He leans on the locker besides her, and she seems a little surprised when she realizes he’s there.

There’s a really subtle crease between her eyebrows when she removes one of her earbuds. “Hi.”

“Hey,” Archie greets back. He doesn’t know why he feels like he’s _prying_ into something that’s none of his business, but now that he’s here, he might as well ask her. “Are you alright? I—”

“Heard the news?” she asks, arching one brow. He feels a rush of heat on his cheeks and nods. “I’m good. Every relationship has a phase where it just…” He never learns what she really means, because she interrupts herself by releasing a heavy sigh and goes back to the contents of her locker. Archie glances at the inside of her locker door. There’s a pearl-framed mirror, a small calendar and some pictures — one of her and Betty, one with the Vixens, and one with Chuck that still hasn’t been removed. “It’s not like we were soulmates, or anything,” she goes on, and she sounds a little tired.

After the whole thing with Valerie, Archie thinks he gets it but doesn’t really know what to say. His instinct is to _hug her_ , which would definitely be a bad move since they haven’t touched since forever and he’s not one hundred percent sure that they are _that_ kind of friends. The kind that hugs.

He just watches her profile as he tries to find something that would be appropriate and better than _I’m sorry_ , when familiar laughter makes them both turn their heads. It’s Chuck, walking down the hallway in his letterman jacket, laughing at something like nothing happened. Archie’s _second_ instinct is to _punch him_ , but then he sees whom he’s laughing at — Josie McCoy, who’s walking by his side, smiling too.

They both look in Archie and Veronica’s direction. Chuck just nods _at him_ in recognition and keeps walking, but Josie stops smiling when her eyes lock with Veronica’s. Archie glances between them two of them and realizes that Veronica is gritting her teeth. Josie turns around and goes to her own locker, not following Chuck.

Veronica must feel Archie’s eyes on her, because she looks up at him. “Like I said, don’t worry,” she says, ripping off Chuck’s picture from her locker door. “I’m alright,” she repeats. The way she slams the locker closed, though, tells a whole different story.

 

 

 

 

 

No one tells him anything new about Chuck and Veronica’s breakup. At night, through Betty’s half-closed curtains, he sees Veronica, Betty, and Polly in Betty’s room, all three of them wearing pajamas, except Veronica’s are a rich purple satin. The two Cooper girls are listening attentively to what Veronica has to say.

Archie closes his own curtains and doesn’t open them anymore until it’s morning and Jughead has picked Betty up for their Saturday date.

 

  

 

 

 

Archie’s mom calls him from Chicago every Sunday morning. It’s a tradition, ever since his parents got divorced when Archie was fourteen. Sometimes, she Facetimes him, but it’s mostly just voice calls. She asks him about school, about football, about his friends. She always drops him a question about Betty and Jughead, too. Ever since last year, Archie has had little to say about them — only _yeah, they’re still together_ and how things have been for Jughead ever since FP got arrested. So, this Sunday, when he tells his mom that Betty is going to help him fix the Firebird and she sounds excited, he feels weirdly happy about it.

Betty shows up in his garage at 3PM, like she said she would. She’s wearing a white t-shirt under denim overalls, and her hair is up in a bun. She’s carrying her father’s toolbox — it looks a little heavy, so Archie runs to help her.

“Okay, let’s see this big bird,” she says, excited, and they both pull off the white, dusty sheet that has covered the car for ages. Visibly, from the outside, Archie can see that there’s some paint work to be done on the hood and doors, and they probably should change the windshield and the headlights. “Do you have the keys?”

Archie throws her his grandpa’s keychain, a vintage Donald Duck embossed on a small, bronze plate. Betty uses it to unlock the doors and leaves it hanging from the ignition after she unlatches the hood.

Fixing the car with Betty is a lot like working with her on a biology project — she tells him what to do, and he does it, without thinking about it or trying to understand the reason behind it all. The normalcy of it is nice — he watches as she leans over to check the engine and writes down a list of buzzwords that he doesn’t know the meaning to

“How was your weekend?” Archie asks, at some point. He does want to ask if Veronica is feeling better about the whole breakup thing, but he’s always been extra careful when it comes to talking about her with Betty. He wouldn’t want her to think that he has ulterior motives.

“It was alright. Juggie and I had dinner with his foster parents, then we went to the trailer to watch some Netflix,” she says, her voice muffled by the hood. Archie raises his eyebrows — he didn’t know that, after the arrest, Jughead still had access to his family’s old trailer. “Will you hand me the big wrench?”

Archie does as he’s asked. “Are they cool? His foster family?”

“Yeah. They’re really nice people. Juggie was really lucky,” Betty answers. Archie always wondered why Jughead never wanted him to get to know his foster parents. In his mind, he can picture it — Betty and Jughead sitting on the couch at his dad’s trailer, cuddling, a subtitled movie playing on the small television. Archie doesn’t really know how he could fit in that picture. Betty has a smudge of grease on her forehead when she emerges from under the hood. “It’s not _too_ bad, considering it’s been out of use since the late-eighties.”

“Can we fix it?”

Betty smiles. “I don’t know if it’s gonna be _quick_ , or if we can do it without asking for my dad’s help, but we can definitely fix it.”

Archie smiles back. He wishes that fixing the car could fix everything else — he could invite Jug to help them, and maybe the three of them could work on something together too. But with the smile Betty is giving him, he has a hard time seeing how Jug would fit in _this_ picture.

 

 

 

 

 

Fred shows up at some point to check on them. He listens to Betty’s explanations about the car’s damages and offers to buy any tools and pieces they’ll need. He gives Archie a squeeze on the shoulder, and two pats on his back — Archie knows it means he’s proud and smiles to himself once his dad goes back inside the house.

They work on the car until the sun starts going down. Betty is putting the tools back into her dad’s toolbox, about to leave, when Reggie Mantle uninvitedly walks through the open garage door. He looks like he’s been running, his t-shirt and hair drenched with sweat.

“Nice wheels,” he comments without saying hello. “You know, my dad would offer you something brand new for a really good price, if you gave us that in exchange.”

“Which is precisely why he shouldn’t give it to you,” Betty snickers.

“Oh, hey, B. Coop.” Reggie turns to her as if he just now saw her and smirks. “How’s your hot sister?”

“Still way out of your league,” Betty says, dryly. She and Reggie have had this _strange_ dynamic ever since they were kids. She always fought him back when he tried to bully other people, like Jughead, but still paired up with him in some classes to help him with his grades. Archie never really got it. “I’m going, Arch.” She turns to him. “We made good progress today. This is going to be great!”

“Yeah,” Archie smiles at her, “thanks for helping, Betty. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He’d offer to help her carry the toolbox, but she’s got her jaw set with determination when she lifts it up and glance at Reggie. So, both boys just stand still and watch her leave the Andrews garage. Archie keeps looking outside once she's gone, and it’s only when Reggie says, “Holy shit,” that he comes back to reality.

“What?” he asks, confused.

“I _just_ got it,” Reggie says, and it does look like he just made a really big discovery, which makes Archie even more confused. “Well, I guess it does make a lot of sense.”

“Reg, do you realize that half of the time I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about?”

“Dude. You’re in love with Betty Cooper!”

Archie’s eyes widen. “What?!”

“That’s why you don’t want to make a move on Melody and why you’re off the market and didn’t pay attention to OSB,” Reggie explains. Archie feels his face warm, and there’s a really uncomfortable feeling setting at the bottom of his throat.

“I’m _not_ ,” he says, but he knows he sounds more defensive than he should. But he’s _not_. He doesn’t know how he can explain that to Reggie in a way that his friend would understand, but he just— he doesn’t think he’s ever been in love. Okay, _maybe_ once, but not for _real_. Plus, he’s known Betty his whole life, and he’d turned her down when she wanted to be with him. So— “I’m not.”

“Right.” Reggie rolls his eyes. It’s clear that he doesn’t believe him. “Look, if you want, we can break her and Donnie Darko up, and I will do my best not to murder her during the spring break trip.”

“Reggie,” Archie breathes, sounding exasperated. He wants to say again that he’s _not_ in love with Betty, but he’s aware that more denial would only feed Reggie’s theory. He runs a hand through his hair. “Go home.”

 

 

 

 

 

He’s _not_ in love with Betty, so he doesn’t look through her window when he goes back to his room. He doesn’t even look into her room the next morning and makes an effort not to feel disappointed when he listens to Jughead’s bike as he comes to pick her up. _That_ would seem like jealousy, and he isn’t jealous. He’s just—

He kind of _really_ hates Reggie for saying that and making him justify _to himself_ all of his actions.

During the following week, the _talk_ about Chuck and Veronica’s breakup and the possible reason behind it seems to go on.

Chuck seems to be doing _great_ — he’s always noisy, laughing with the other seniors during football practices. Archie sees that Josie is now waiting for Chuck to leave practice and doesn’t know what to think of that. From afar, Archie thinks that Veronica looks better than ever, but he’s not really sure if it’s _real_. She bought a new outfit over the weekend, a faux-leather skirt paired up with a white, long sleeved shirt with a fabric so light it was almost see-through, depending on the light, and she started styling her hair with a side part instead of a middle part like she always wore before.

He’s under the impression that she’s quieter than usual, though. She’s always listening to music. Archie wonders what songs but can’t bring himself to talk to her again and ask how she’s doing. It would probably just add to the mess in his head.

 

 

 

 

 

Archie spends the whole day trying not to overthink Reggie’s words, but he can’t help but steal a couple of glances at Betty when he sits next to her during lab. He feels essentially the same about her, the same thing he has always felt, ever since second grade when she helped him not to fail at school.

He asked her to marry him, on that occasion. He remembers it still, the way she blushed and told him that they were too young, but that he should ask her again at eighteen and she’d say yes.

“Juggie texted. He wants to meet at Pop’s. Do you wanna go? Maybe grab a burger with us?” she asks when the bell rings.

Archie knits his eyebrows together. Just last week he wanted to catch up with Jug, but looking at him and _Betty_ from across a booth at Pop’s would probably be too much, right now. “I’m— I have to go to the— _library_ ,” Archie lies. Betty makes a face, and he thinks it’s stupid that he has to keep on telling himself that he’s _not_ in love with her. Is he doing this because he’s denying something, or is it just how he really feels? “I have this project to work on.”

“Uh, okay.” Betty smiles briefly, as if she knows this is just an excuse. She looks out the window. Outside, the day that started sunny and bright has turned grey, the wind rustling through the trees. “Great. Just when I forgot my coat.” She sighs, zipping her backpack closed. Betty’s wearing a pink short-sleeved t-shirt, and even from a distance, Archie can see that her arms are covered with goosebumps from the cold air.

Archie doesn’t think about it — he just takes off his letterman jacket and hands it to Betty. She tilts her head. “I’ll be fine,” he insists. It’s true. He’s wearing a long sleeved blue shirt, so he won’t feel cold.

“Thanks Arch.” Betty says, almost bashful, when she gets the letterman jacket and wraps it around her shoulders. “I’ll give it back later.”

Archie shrugs. “You better. I know where you live.”

Betty chuckles and then leaves, carrying her backpack with one strap. Archie watches her leave just as he did yesterday evening, before Reggie came up with his _theory_ — but to see Betty wearing his blue and yellow jacket around her shoulders, her ponytail bouncing as she walks away, brings that weird feeling back to his throat.

He remembers it. Like it happened yesterday, her arms around his neck, her hopeful and shy eyes when she started talking about things he didn’t expect. _Now that I’m a River Vixen, and you’re going to be on the varsity football…_

This is what his life would look like, if he hadn’t said no.

 

 

 

 

 

That night, Archie sits at his desk, staring at his homework without really doing it, when he reaches a conclusion. He’s not in love with Betty, like Reggie said. He’s _not_ — but he could have been.

Alone in his room, he allows himself to see it: Betty, wearing his letterman jacket like she did earlier today, waiting for him after games. Hanging out with him, his dad and Vegas like she had always been part of their family. Baking sugar cookies and wiping frosting off his lips. He can even admit that he’d like to know if it’d be weird to kiss her. If his body would react to it, if his heart would flutter.

He doesn’t know if he regrets it, saying no. To be quite honest, he hadn’t thought about it until Reggie said it. He didn’t feel it, when she wanted him to, but maybe it was just a matter of timing. Maybe he thought that things would happen when they were supposed to happen. He can’t even _remember_ what was on his mind back then, other than Veronica’s enticing presence and Betty’s pretty eyes full of sadness.

Maybe it would’ve worked out, in another life.

Taking a deep breath, Archie opens one of his notebooks, but he doesn’t attempt to do his homework. He hears it, in his mind, the words buzzing.

_in another life, i would make you stay  
_ _so i don’t have to say you were the one that got away_

Archie strums his guitar and writes the song until Jughead brings Betty back home. He sees her reach up to close the curtains, but looks away. Much later, he uploads the video to his YouTube channel, making it unlisted like the other three songs, and it really soothes the confusion inside him. He names it _To Betty_.

It feels like a goodbye to the alternative ending of this story.

 

 

 

 

 

Archie’s week goes on in its own rhythm. Betty gives him his letterman jacket back first thing on Wednesday morning, and it’s like Reggie never said anything to planted a seed of doubt in Archie’s mind. Chuck continues to spend time with Josie McCoy, and Veronica continues to show up in pretty, new clothes, her hair falling in dark waves down her shoulders. Jughead picks Betty up, drives her to school, and sometimes greets Archie with a wave before taking off on his motorbike.

On Sunday, his dad gives him new parts he got for the car. He makes cocoa for Archie and Betty to drink while they work, and Vegas runs around their legs, trying to participate. Archie feels lighter somehow, almost thankful for Reggie — writing that song and saying his goodbye really was a way to fade away that wistful feeling in Archie’s chest.

 

 

 

 

 

It wasn’t until the next Thursday that it all got fucked up.

Archie and Reggie were in the boy's locker room, changing into their football practice uniforms, when Reggie brings OSB up again. “We have exactly two months until Cape Cod. I heard people are starting to book the rooms,” he says, as he helps Archie place his shoulder pads. “We should start making some progress, man. I’m serious.”

“Why can’t we just go alone?” Archie asks, turning around when the shoulder pads are in place. “I bet most of the guys are going as—”

“Straight, single dudes?” Reggie lifts his eyebrows, and Archie rolls his eyes. “The spring break trip is the most important event of _the year_. Have you decided how you’re going to get into Betty Cooper’s panties, or— _Ouch!_ ”

Archie punches him on the shoulder, a little more forcefully than needed. “Don’t talk about her like that,” he warns. Reggie rubs the spot where Archie punched him, making a face. “Or about any girl, for that matter. Do you really think Josie is going to go with you if she hears half the shit you say?”

“What’s wrong with you, man? You don’t need to get all worked up just because I mentioned your girlfriend’s underwear.” Reggie slams his locker door, making Archie heave out an annoyed breath. “Oh, wait, she’s _not_ your girlfriend. Maybe I got it wrong, and you really just want Smelly Hat’s dick.”

Archie puts on his t-shirt, throwing his cellphone and wallet inside his locker. “If you think Josie is going to give you the time of the day when Chuck Clayton has his eyes on her, you’re not only a dumbass, but you’re also delusional.”

Reggie snorts. He’s about to say something else, when their coach yells from outside the locker room that if anyone is late to practice, they’ll have to do suicide runs until they throw up.

 

 

 

 

 

It’s not _just_ a threat. He and Reggie are _two minutes_ late, and they have to spend _twenty_ extra minutes on the field, doing sprints and dodging tackles. By the time they get back to the locker room to shower, Archie is cranky and _over_ Reggie’s existence. He immediately gets into the shower and decides to spend as much time as he can under the hot water, just to avoid having to interact with his jackass of a friend.

It works. The locker room is empty once Archie gets out the shower. He dries his hair with a towel until it’s only somewhat damp and changes into jeans and a t-shirt, grabbing his stuff from his locker before leaving, intending to go home.

Archie’s _really_ surprised to find Veronica Lodge outside the gym, looking a little out of place with her high-waisted black skirt and high-heels, her arms crossed in front of her chest. Archie knits his eyebrows together, not really sure if her withering glare is meant for him.

 _Fuck._ Perhaps she somehow knows that he said Chuck had his eyes set on Josie? Maybe _Reggie_ told her? Is he going to get scolded for talking about things he has _no business_ talking about? “Hi, Ronnie,” he says, because he has no idea what else to say.

“Hi,” she says in a low, quiet voice. But her red lips are pressed together in a thin line, and he’s not sure if she does look _angry_ , or what. “I don’t understand what the hell _that_ means.”

She shows him her cellphone. Archie looks down at the screen. He can see a picture of himself, sitting in his bedroom with his guitar on his lap, and he blinks a couple of times, even more confused, until it hits him like a punch to the stomach. The picture is not a picture. It’s a video that has been paused. A video where he’s playing guitar. A video where he’s singing a song.

 _To Veronica_.

That's what the title says. There’s a YouTube logo in the right corner, too. She’s showing him the video he uploaded last year. She found his channel. Weren’t his songs unlisted? How can this be happening?!

Archie feels all the blood in his body rush to his head. She found his song.

_This is not a drill._

“I— don’t get me wrong. The song isn’t _bad_.” Archie’s eyes shift from the cellphone to her, and his palms are sweaty. _How the hell._ She continues talking, “It’s actually quite good. But I don’t understand why you’d send me this _now_. Is it because Chuck and I are over? Because, honestly—”

“I didn’t send this to you.” It’s the only thing he manages to say, his heart beating in his throat. He feels like he could faint from embarrassment. Veronica frowns.

“Yes, you did,” she says, looking at her phone and closing the YouTube app to open their chat history. It has always been somewhat quiet — only a few texts about completely random subjects exchanged throughout the two years they’ve known each other — but, at the very bottom, sent _today_ , is the URL for his video, complete with a thumbnail of his dumb face.

Archie takes her phone from her hand. The message was sent about an hour and a half ago. He beats his brain to connect the dots — one and a half hours ago, he’d just thrown his stuff into his locker while arguing with Reggie. “Oh, _no_ ,” he mutters. Veronica says something else, but Archie can’t really hear her over the sound of his heart slamming against his ribcage. If Reggie snooped on his phone and found _his channel_ , that means he could have sent _all_ the videos. To _all_ the girls. “Oh, _no, no, no_.”

“— I don’t want you to think that I was playing games or leading you on when I was actually just trying to be nice to you in that completely messed up situation that we got ourselves into— Archie?”

“Ronnie, please, I don’t—” he stops short when his eyes catch some movement over Veronica’s shoulders. _Betty_. Betty is walking up to them, the set of her jaw giving away her determination. She has her phone in her hand too, and Archie feels like he’s going to dissolve. The song he wrote for Veronica was uploaded a long time ago — he can get away with any excuse — but the one addressed to Betty didn’t happen until _two weeks ago_. She’ll misunderstand it. Their friendship will be ruined _again_. And _Jughead_. _Oh_ _my God_.

Glancing behind Veronica again, Archie notices that Betty slows down.

Betty, who _can't_ think he’s in love with her.

His face must be all flushed, and he probably has _crazy_ eyes right now. _Veronica_ is looking at him like he has crazy eyes.

Veronica. Beautiful Veronica with her rich, dark hair and her perfect, red lipstick. Veronica, who once walked into his life and stopped the world around him. Veronica, who was there when he first rejected Betty’s feelings.

The idea hits Archie like a car crash. Maybe his brain is operating in _panic mode_ , but that’s how it happens. Betty takes another step towards them, and Archie holds Veronica’s face in his hands, ducks his head down, and kisses her.

She gasps in surprise, holding his wrists. Archie can only hope that she doesn’t _freak out_ and slap him senseless, because that’s probably what he deserves for stealing a kiss without any explanation. But, for some reason, she doesn’t. She kisses him back, his top lip between hers, and Archie feels his stomach sink. There has been a time when he thought that if he ever got to kiss Veronica again, which he probably wouldn’t, the Earth would change its axis of rotation. That it would change _everything_ , like it did the first time.

He opens his eyes, and Veronica stares at him with an expression that’s a mix of disbelief and curiosity, her small hands still around his wrist. Archie swallows hard.

“You dropped my phone,” she mutters, a really small crease between her eyebrows. Archie immediately lets her face go and stares at her for another second before looking down to search for her phone. Okay, if _that’s_ what she has to say, maybe nothing changed at all. And Betty— of course, _Betty_ , is nowhere to be seen anymore. So, yeah, even though he did _not_ think this through, it might have worked.

“Sorry,” he says, grabbing her cellphone and handing it to her. The screen isn’t cracked, so that’s a good thing. “I should get going now,” he says, and proceeds to do so, without looking at Veronica again.

“Archie—” he hears she call, but he can’t bring himself to turn around. If his brain was operating in _panic mode_ just a few minutes ago, it is definitely short-circuited and not functioning right now.

 

 

 

 

 

Archie walks home so fast he doesn’t even realize his surroundings. His dad says _Hey Arch_ , and Vegas trots to greet him. He ignores them both, going straight up the stairs and closing his door. He wishes he could feel safe here, but _Betty_ — Betty lives just next door. So, he shuts his curtains and sits on the bed with his phone in his hand.

Four songs.

Four songs he was _so careful_ to upload as unlisted so no one would find out about them.

He opens his messaging app. Reggie sent _them all_ from his phone so it looked like he was the one who did it. He sent it in order, too. Betty and Veronica have obviously listened to their songs already, but also— _Cheryl_ has seen the message as well. Valerie still hasn’t opened hers, but it’s just a matter of time. He can't delete it. He can't _undo it_.

He could delete the video, maybe, but Val is the least of his concerns. He had a real relationship with her, and he could easily just— shake it off, laugh about it. She wouldn’t mind. She would give him tips on his singing voice.

But _the other girls_ …

Archie opens the links, one by one. _Shit,_ Cheryl’s song has seven new views. Betty’s has four. Veronica’s song has only two new views, and that’s probably a good thing. Archie closes his eyes. He almost feels like _crying_ , but that would be embarrassing. He should just make plans for Reggie’s imminent death. Because he _is_ going to kill him as soon as he gets himself out of this situation.

Fucking hell, why did he have to kiss Veronica?

A soft knock on his door makes him lift up his head. His dad doesn’t wait until he says _come in_ to open it. “Are you okay, son?” Fred asks, poking his head into Archie’s room.

Archie shakes his head. He feels _exhausted_ and _defeated_ , for some reason. This wasn’t supposed to happen. His songs were _his_ , his way of dealing with his feelings, his way of _letting them go_. “I’m just really tired.” He sighs. He really hopes his dad is not up for a _man-to-man_ talk right now, because he wouldn’t be able to handle it.

Thankfully, Fred just nods. “I’ll call you when dinner’s ready,” he says, looking at Archie for a beat before closing the door again.

Archie throws himself on his bed and closes his eyes. Maybe if he falls asleep, this won’t be anything but a crazy dream.

No, a _nightmare_.

 

 

 

 

_tbc_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOOOOO! Happy Day 4 of the Varchiedale Ficathon! I here present you this new fic, that I've been working very hard at and that ended up being a long ride lol!
> 
> I was quite apprehensive to publish this one because of the "Archie Andrews/Betty Cooper" thing going on lol. I KNOW that Varchies are not used to have Barchie featured in their fics and I know that most of us don't do well with other ships, but the movie this was based on is basically about a love triangle, so... Yep. This is the first time I'm delving into the infamous BAV territory, but don't FRET, I hope to know what I'm doing! lol.
> 
> What makes this fic interesting to me is that I get to play with canon in a complete different way. I kind of rewrote season one here without murder or trauma, and these teens are just living their teen lives. I really hope you like it. It ended up getting muuuuuch bigger than I anticipated, so I'm thinking 6 parts is a good number, but it might be only 5 or maybe 7? lol Let's see. I really hope you like it!
> 
> Major thanks to Nic, my beta and fave and partner in crime, who stayed up until 3AM yesterday to beta this for us! She rocks!
> 
> Music is a great part of it and these are some songs feat in this chapter:
> 
>   * Beautiful Girls - Sean Kingston (at the beginning)
>   * Cherry Red - Bee Gees (or "To Cheryl")
>   * Everything Has Changed - Taylor Swift/Ed Sheeran (first attempt of Veronica's song)
>   * Runnin' Low - Shawn Mendes ("To Valerie")
>   * The One That Got Away - Katy Perry ("To Betty")
>   * Wicked Game - Gemma Hayes covering Chris Isaak ("To Veronica")
> 



	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> according to archie comics wiki, midvale is one of the nearby towns, so there's that.

_a tornado flew around my room_  
_before you came_  
_excuse the mess it made_

 

::  
::  
::

 

He wakes up freakishly early on Friday. It’s so early that the sky is still a shade between pale grey and pale blue, and Betty’s curtains are definitely still closed. Archie checks his phone before getting up, hanging on to the _slightest_ hope, but the last four texts “he” sent are still there and don't let him lie to himself — it’s _not_ a crazy nightmare.

He groans into his pillow but ultimately decides that he shouldn’t beat himself up anymore. The songs are out there. Now, there are only two things he can do: one — avoid Betty, Veronica, Val, and Cheryl for the rest of his life, and two — kill Reggie.

It’s actually a good plan. If he’s sent to juvie for murder, he won’t need to face the girls ever again.

Archie makes an effort to get up before anyone else in the house. He showers, changes, eats a bowl of cereal as he pets Vegas’s head so the dog will stay quiet, scribbles a note to his dad, and slips out of his house before the Coopers even start making noises.

He arrives at school before anyone. _Literally._ The gates are still locked, so he has to jump the fence surrounding the field. He lays down on the bleachers, resting his head on his backpack, and sets his alarm to wake him up in half-an-hour, when the school gates will finally open.

Archie doesn’t wake up to his alarm, though. He wakes up to _pain_ on the side of his stomach, and he only realizes what’s going on when he opens his eyes to find Cheryl Blossom hovering above him, her red high-heeled shoe poking his abdomen because she’s _stepping_ on him.

“What the fuck!” Archie blurts out, sitting up quickly. Cheryl has a dangerous grin on her lips, one of her hands resting on her hip. “Are you fucking crazy?!”

“ _Oh._ I thought I was _sweeter than the honeycomb_.” She pouts. “This song kind of sucks. When did you write it? That summer, when you tried to grab my boobs?”

Archie rolls his eyes. He feels like sliding down the gap between the bleachers and disappearing forever, but at the same time, he doesn’t think he _cares_. Cheryl’s song never meant much, not next to the others. “Sure. That’s _exactly_ what happened.”

Cheryl seems pleased. She sits down next to him, arching her eyebrows. “I don’t know if I should feel flattered or sorry for you. I mean, I was pretending to be straight and still managed to give you a life-changing kiss.”

He chuckles. “Don’t brag. It wasn’t that good. I was just _really_ inexperienced.”

“Cute.” Cheryl pinches his cheek. Archie almost bats her hand away but just pulls his face out of her reach. “You know you have no chance with me, so why did you decide to send me that?”

“I didn’t. You were never supposed to know it existed,” he breathes out. Cheryl looks at him with curiosity. “I’m figuring out what to do to the person who leaked it.”

“I see. I suppose, you’ll now ask me not to show or talk about it to anyone.”

“I would like to avoid public humiliation, yes.” He looks at Cheryl, who he considers to be his first real crush. Most of his life, Archie had been scared of her (except for those hazy weeks during that summer), and they were never really friends, even though they’d known each other since forever. Last winter holiday, she was ice-skating with her girlfriend, Heather Higgs, and Archie happened to be there as well when she tripped and twisted her ankle, falling on the ice. He helped carry her to Heather’s car, and Cheryl started being a lot nicer to him ever since.

Which is why it surprises him a little when she smirks in a way that’s not nice at all. “Did you really think you could write me a hideous song about your wet dreams and nothing would happen?”

Archie runs his fingers through his hair, tired. “Yes.”

“I’ll keep your secret,” she says. Archie waits for her to go on, because it’s surely not as simple as that. “But since nothing in this world comes for free—” there we go. “You owe me a favor.” She lifts an eyebrow.

“What do you need?”

“I don’t know yet. But whatever it is, and whenever it is, you’re gonna do what I ask, and you won’t question it. Otherwise, I’ll happily upload this video and have it played on the cafeteria television. And I’ll post it on my Instagram, too.”

Archie sighs. “Sure,” he says. He’s worn-out, and he does _not_ have a lot of fight left in him — he just shrugs. What’s blackmail in the face of possibly damaging his best friends’ relationship _and_ having to face Veronica after kissing her ( _in front of Betty_ ) like a whole idiot, yesterday?

“Great,” Cheryl sounds chirpy when she gets up, turning around dramatically, her hair swinging around her face. “Toodles!”

 

 

 

 

 

Archie plans his day carefully. He considers not going to class at all, but Principal Weatherbee would call his dad to make sure everything’s alright, and that’s _another_ thing he’d like to avoid. So, he adopts the best strategy he can think of: he hides. He hides in the boys bathroom or in empty classrooms, and he waits patiently for the bell to ring so he can get to class five minutes too late and no one can talk to him or pair up with him.

He has only four periods on Friday. Everything is quite easy to manage, since he shares no classes with Betty or Veronica today, so he just has to hide from them in the hallways. He does, though, have precalculus with Reggie, who apparently is shunning him too, since he doesn’t even look up at him when Archie walks into the classroom.

Archie sits at a couple of desks behind him and stares at the back of his head so intensely that Reggie probably leaves with a migraine — but Archie still doesn’t know _how_ he’s going to murder his (absolutely) former friend. If he thinks about it, Reggie is the root of all his problems. Not only did he invade his privacy and leak his song, but he was also the one who took Archie to that party at where Cheryl kissed him. _He_ was the one who encouraged him to get into that closet with Veronica. And _he_ was the one who tried to manipulate him into thinking that his feelings for Betty meant something more.

Maybe after this storm has passed, Archie can ask Cheryl for advice on how to make Reggie’s life as miserable as possible.

The idea gets Archie quite pleased. He even forgets about the situation for a glorious minute, as he imagines all the revenge Cheryl would help him plot, when the bell rings again, announcing the end of his school day. From the door’s window, Archie sees a glimpse of a blonde ponytail passing by and remembers to freak out again.

He leaves the classroom faster than anyone else, just carelessly shoving everything back into his backpack. As soon as he’s out the door he can see Betty walking towards the lockers, but she hasn’t seen him yet so, naturally, Archie turns around as fast as he can and leaves the school through the fire exit.

His phone buzzes when he reaches the back of the school. He hadn’t opened his messaging app ever since this morning, so he takes a deep breath before doing so. Somehow, Valerie still didn’t get the message Reggie sent her, which makes Archie wonder if she changed numbers. Well, it’s one less thing to worry about, especially since the text that just arrived is from Betty.

**_arch, i think we should talk. meet me at pop’s?_ **

Archie clenches his jaw. It would hurt to send her a _sorry, can’t do_ , so he just shakes his head, disapproving of himself, and puts his phone back in his pocket without saying anything.

 

 

 

 

 

He doesn’t go home, because even if Betty isn’t there, his dad will be, and Archie can only get away with _being exhausted_ once. He can’t go to Pop’s either, for obvious reasons, so he opts for his only option: he hops onto a bus that takes him to Midvale, the nearest town. It might be even smaller than Riverdale, which is why the kids from his school never go, even though it’s only a fifteen-minute drive from school (twenty-five, by bus). 

Archie enters a quaint café in Midvale downtown that’s called _Jill’s_ — a place he only knew existed because he went there with Val once, before she left. The booths are smaller than those at Pop’s and the seats are covered with teal leather. There’s nothing special about it. No one is going to find him here.

He sits on a stool by the counter and, ignoring everything else, quickly texts his dad to let him know where he is and that he’ll be home before curfew. Then, he orders a chocolate milkshake and tries to clear his head for at least a couple of minutes as he watches the waitress prepare it.

It doesn’t really work. Archie soon has his phone in his hands again, staring at his texts, not believing that this is _actually_ happening, and that there’s absolutely nothing he can do about it. He checks the views on the videos as he starts sipping on his milkshake, the sugar helping with tune down his anxiety. _To Cheryl’s_ views have stopped increasing. _To Veronica’s_ views went from two to four. And _To Betty_ has been seen _eleven_ times from yesterday.

Archie rubs his forehead. He needs to delete those videos. Even if there’s a possibility that all the girls downloaded them to their phones, he can’t allow them to _stay online_ as they replay the songs over and over. Well, as _Betty_ replays the song over and over.

He selects all four thumbnails and presses the _delete_ button. A message pops up, asking if he’s sure of that, because it couldn’t be undone. Archie takes another sip of the milkshake. It’s kind of bittersweet to see them all go — he probably had copies of his songs recorded in some old pen drive lost in his drawers, and he knows that Betty’s song demo is saved on his laptop, but _still._

Without thinking about it anymore, Archie says he’s sure and deletes the songs. And then they’re gone, like nothing had ever happened.

 

 

 

 

 

He spends about twenty minutes idly playing games on his phone and drinking a second milkshake, when the bell chimes. Archie looks to the door, as he usually does.

Somewhere in the back of his mind he remembers half-paying attention to history class once, and the teacher was explaining how the Greeks believed in goddesses that controlled every human’s destiny with a thread. Well, if that’s the case, Archie can almost hear the Fates mocking him when he sees Veronica walking into the diner, wearing the same _cape_ she wore at Pop’s when he first saw her, her eyes wandering around the place. Veronica obviously finds him, since he’s one of only three customers here. She tilts her head up when they lock eyes.

Archie can barely keep his mouth from hanging open. “Wh… _Ronnie._ ”

She plasters a _very_ fake smile on her lips. “Yes. Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, I walk right into yours,” she says as if she’s reciting something, removing her cape and placing it, and her handbag, on the counter. “Don’t tell me you’ve never watched _Casablanca_.”

He hasn’t, but he won’t tell her as he watches her lift herself up and sit on the stool next to him. “Is this a coincidence?”

She almost rolls her eyes and reaches out to check one of the plastic menus. “Of course, it isn’t. I went to your house, and your dad told me you’d be here.”

Archie’s eyebrows travel towards his hairline.

“Yes, I’ve ambushed you.” She returns the menu without ordering anything, looking at him with the same tight-lipped smile. “Now we have no choice but to talk about what the hell is happening.”

Archie takes a long, deep breath while he stares at Veronica, who’s looking at him with enquiring eyes. “I don’t know what to say.”

“In that case, why don’t you just answer all of my questions?” She turns the stool until she’s facing him. “Why did you write me a song?”

“I—” he starts. _Oh, boy_. He’s never spoken about his crush on Veronica with _anyone_ , always too afraid that talking about it out loud would made it _real_ , and now he has to tell _her_. “Okay. Sophomore year, when you moved to town, I—” How does he even go on? _I kissed you once and kept dreaming about it, but we chose Betty_? “I think I developed a kind of crush on you? And then we got into that mess, so…” He scratches the back of his head. “Well, I had to deal with it, so I wrote a song about it.”

“Right.” She’s looking at him so intently that Archie thinks she’s trying to read something on his flushed face. He swallows and tries to school his expression into something neutral. “But our _armoire rendezvous_ happened a long time ago.”

“Our wh—” The French lessons escape his mind for a second. _Oh_. She’s referring to the time they kissed in the closet. It’s good that she realizes a long time has passed— he can play the water under the bridge card. “Yeah. _Ages_.”

“So, why did you send me it yesterday? You had it up for such a long time.” She tilts her head to the side. “Is it because Chuck and I broke up?”

She asked the same thing yesterday, before he panicked. Archie shakes his head. “Look. I know it sounds crazy, but— I didn’t send you the song. You were _never_ supposed to know it existed. I got into a fight with Reggie yesterday, and I think he— well, I _know_ that he snooped on my phone and found the songs.”

“Wait a minute. _Songs_?” She frowns. Archie nods. “Are there more songs about me out there?”

He widens his eyes. “ _Oh_ , no. The other songs are…” he stops for a second, wondering if that makes him look _bad_. But she did go all the way to another town just to talk to him, and she looks like she’s waiting for an honest answer. Archie can’t help but give her one. “About other girls. There are four out there, including yours.”

 _“Four girls?”_ Veronica raises her eyebrows, seeming a little impressed. Archie’s cheeks are on fire. “Didn’t know you were such a scoundrel, Archiekins.”

He’s about to justify himself, when he realizes that she’s teasing, because there’s a small grin appearing on her lips. He chuckles. “They’re just— I don’t know if you’ll understand it,” he says, and she keeps her eyebrows up, as if she’s telling him to _try her_. “I wrote these songs as a way to say goodbye to my feelings when I realized that I had to move on,” he confesses. Veronica is not grinning anymore, and he’s grateful for that. “Except for Cheryl’s song, I guess, but that’s just a really bad song.”

Veronica’s mouth hangs open. “You wrote a song for Cheryl Blossom?” she asks, and Archie is suddenly glad they’re having this conversation a million miles away from Pop’s, even though he’s not one hundred percent sure that the three customers at Jill’s haven’t heard of Cheryl Blossom.

He nods. “I was in a bad place,” he says, making Veronica snort. He knows that Veronica and Cheryl are good friends, and he hadn’t, until this very moment, thought about the possibility of them _talking_ about his demise. He suddenly imagines them at a sleepover, braiding each other’s hair and giggling incessantly as they analyze his lyrics.

It’s a _horrifying_ picture.

“So, you wrote me a song when you realized you had to move on from me,” she repeats. Archie agrees with his head. “I don’t think it really worked, then? Since, you know, you _kissed me_ just yesterday.”

Archie had honestly forgotten about that for a moment. The heat comes back to his face. “It did work. I’m over you.” His dad always says that if someone really needs someone else to believe them, they should look into their eyes as they say it — which is why he assures her of that fact, _I’m over you_ , while looking into hers. He almost adds an _I swear_ , but that would probably make it sound like he isn’t. Veronica narrows her eyes _just_ slightly. “I kissed you so it would _look_ like I wanted to be with you, so somebody else won’t think that I want to be with them.”

“ _Somebody else_?” Veronica wrinkles her nose. “Wait a minute, Ed Sheeran. You better tell me _who_ this mysterious lady is, otherwise, I’m just gonna start believing that you have a secret tattoo with my name on your left peck.”

Archie presses his eyes with the heels of his hands. “Betty,” he murmurs as he curses Reggie inside his mind a thousand times. “She’s also got a song, so you can see how awkward and complicated that one is gonna get if she thinks that—”

“Wait, wait, wait.” Veronica raises one hand. “ _Betty_? _Betty_ saw us kissing?” Archie nods, noticing that Veronica’s breath is quickening. “Okay. _Okay_ ,” she repeats, and it makes Archie think that it’s not really _okay_.

“I kn—”

“I can’t _believe_ you pulled me into this drama.” Veronica rubs her temples. He looks down at the black and white checked tiles on the ground, wishing they would crack and swallow him whole. “If Betty gets angry with me because of you, I’m going to—” she stops talking, and takes a deep breath. “Why didn’t you just tell her everything? A song you wrote in the fifth grade is not— _what now_?”

“That’s the problem. It’s not an old song,” he admits, not daring to look up at Veronica’s face. “I wrote it and uploaded it just two weeks ago.”

 Veronica’s voice comes out very low. _“Oh.”_

Archie bites his lip, glancing up at her. She’s frowning, as if she’s thinking _really hard,_ trying to digest everything he just told her, but her eyes are cast downwards now. “Like I said, it’s a goodbye song,” he keeps on explaining. “But with everything that happened before… Plus, she’s with Jughead, and I _really_ don’t want him to think that I’m trying to serenade his girlfriend. That would suck.”

Veronica presses her fingers to her temples, leaving her eyes closed for a moment. “Why didn’t you just write us love letters?” she says, under her breath, and then gets the plastic menu again. “I need a sundae.”

 

 

 

 

 

They don’t talk about the songs anymore — well, Veronica does demand to know who the forth song was written to, and she was slightly disappointed when he said it was to Val and not someone more _scandalous_ — which is good.

They do talk about other stuff: the upcoming football game next Friday and how Jack’s, one of the diners in Centreville, had the best coffee in the region, according to Veronica. Archie had never been there. Even if it’s a little awkward, he thinks it’s nice to have one normal conversation, after the whole run and hide of his day.

When he realizes the sun is setting, Archie says that he needs to catch the bus back to Riverdale. Veronica just rolls her eyes and gets her phone out of her handbag. “C’mon. Smithers can drive us back,” she says, nonchalant. _Oh, right_. Except for the constant change of her wardrobe and the pearls she normally wears around her neck, Veronica has always been so nice to him that he always forgets that she’s also really rich with a driver at her disposal.

Still, Archie pays for her ice-cream. It’s the least he can do.

“What are your plans for the weekend?” Archie asks when they’re both in the back of her town car, each at one end of the leather seat. The windows are dark, making it look later than it actually is.

Veronica looks down at her manicure. “None, so far. Cheryl’s has her weekend date with Heather. Kevin is probably going out with Moose. Everyone else has picked Chuck’s side.” She bites her lip, looking out the window, turning her face away from him. It only lasts a second — she soon turns back again, a teasing gleam in her eyes. “And now, thanks to you, I have to avoid Betty too.”

“If it makes you feel any better, I’m quite low in the friend department, too. I now hate Reggie, can’t look at Betty, and Jughead—” he pauses, sighing. It’s been so long since he’s hung out with Jughead that it’s almost weird, to put him in that list.

The car turns on Elm Street, and it slows down. “I think at least we have each other.” Veronica sighs too, and Archie _almost_ frowns, wondering what she means. They’re friends, sure, but not the kind of friends that can have plans for the weekend. The car pulls over in front of his house. “Too bad _I’m only gonna break your heart,_ ” she says, lifting an eyebrow.

He ends up chuckling, even if he doesn’t mean to. He deserves that. “Thanks for the ride, Ronnie,” he says, opening the door, but he stops with one foot outside the car. “I’m sorry for kissing you out of nowhere.”

Veronica bats her eyelashes at him, a coy smile on her lips. “Could’ve been worse,” she says. Archie thinks she’s joking, but it still gets his cheeks warm.

 

 

 

 

 

Archie watches as the town car drives away. He releases the breath that he’d been holding ever since Veronica walked into Jill’s — at least she didn’t blackmail him — and barely has time to breathe in again when he realizes that he’s lowered his guard. Betty is crossing the distance between their houses, her hands in the back pockets of her jeans.

“There you are,” Betty says softly, and now Archie can’t run, or hide. He feels the milkshakes he drank turn over in his stomach and swallows hard. “Was that V?”

Archie hesitates. The sun has set almost completely now, and the sky is full of beautiful shades of blue and orange. Betty’s eyes don’t look so green in this light. “Yeah,” he finally says. Betty looks down for a second, and then back up at him, as if she had something to say about it, but gave up on doing so.

“I— I got your message. The video.” She chews on her lower lip. The look on her face — that uncertainty, the way her eyes are searching for an answer on his face, like she can read and understand him better than anyone. That’s exactly what he wanted to avoid. “The song. I don’t understand.”

He can’t even begin to explain it. He doesn’t fully understand it, either. So, he just runs his hand through his hair and shakes his head. “Look, Betty— I didn’t send you that message.” He exhales. He knows that this doesn’t change anything — he was still the one in that video he uploaded only two weeks ago. “It doesn’t really matter.”

“Did you write that song?” she asks, staring at him so hard that he has to look away. They both know the answer to that one, so Archie doesn’t feel the need to answer it, shuffling his feet. “Arch, I don’t— This is crazy. How are you suddenly writing songs about me, if—”

“No, _Betty_ , I—” he stops her, almost putting his hands on her shoulders, but he figures it’s better if he doesn’t touch her. “Whatever is in that video… It doesn’t change anything.”

It _shouldn’t_ change anything, he thinks as he grinds his teeth together. He wants to tell her exactly what he told Veronica just a couple of hours ago — it’s just a goodbye song. But he can’t bring himself to say it, not when Betty is looking at him exactly like she did almost two years ago, except they were standing on _her_ porch and wearing fancy clothes. There’s an _expectation_ that he doesn’t want to witness.

Betty is Jughead’s girlfriend. She loves Jughead, and he loves Jughead. He wishes he could remind her of that somehow — did she forget it, though?

“Just help me understand what’s going on. Do you have feelings—”

“Betty let’s… not talk about it.” He squeezes his eyes shut, wincing a little, but remembers what his dad taught him about wanting someone to believe in something and opens them again. “It was a mistake,” he says, staring into her eyes, his heart beating a little bit faster, “and I don’t want to talk about it.”

Betty gives him the very same look she did that September night, some underlying disappointment. She purses her lip before stepping away and walking back to her home without saying another word.

Archie hides his face in his hands. In another life, he’d run after her.

 

 

 

 

 

Betty leaves on Jughead’s motorcycle on Saturday morning, as usual, and only returns home when it’s very late in the evening. She doesn’t open her curtains. 

On Sunday afternoon, Archie is in the living room petting Vegas as the dog takes a nap, when Fred walks in, putting on his plaid Sherpa jacket as if he’s about to go out. “Hey, kiddo. Thought you’d be working with Betty?” Fred points towards the garage.

Archie grimaces. He went to the garage earlier to stare at the Firebird and at all the parts Betty requested and his father had already bought. They’d probably stay there, forgotten, for a while. He thought about searching for _DIY_ tutorials on YouTube, but even just looking at the car was slightly upsetting.

“Uh.” After yesterday, he didn’t expect Betty to show up and just keep on helping, but it still stung a little when she didn’t, especially because he knows that it’s all his fault. “She’s busy today, so…” Archie shrugs. If his dad realizes something is up, he doesn’t say anything. “Are you going out?”

“Yeah. Do you remember Marcus, the head architect for the Alder Street building?” Archie nods, vaguely remembering him. “He invited me and the guys to watch the game at his place, today. Are you staying in again?”

He knows his dad means well by asking, but it’s the _again_ that gets to him. He feels like ever since Val left, he hasn’t done anything with his weekends except for going to the gym, going for a run alone, and dodging Reggie’s party invitations. He was so excited when Betty agreed to work on the car, but now that’s not a possibility.

Even his _dad_ has more friends than him, right now.

“I might go to the Bijou. I’m waiting for a friend to decide if we’re going or not,” he lies and feels stupid and morose for having to do it.

“A friend, huh?” his dad asks in a way that’s teasing but also not. Vegas, who had been sleeping soundly for the past half-hour, suddenly wakes up and runs to Fred as if he’s never seen him before. “Yes, good boy.” Fred leans down to scratch Vegas ears. “Well, I’ll be back before nine. If you do go out, don’t forget to fill his food bowl.”

 

 

 

 

 

Archie is doing exactly that — filling Vegas’s food bowl as the dog patiently sits by his side, wagging his tail — when the idea crawls into his brain. He fights against it for exactly five minutes before giving in. He fishes his phone out of his pocket and opens his messaging app, making a face when he remembers that the last thing “he” sent her was the video URL.

**_hey. i'm thinking of going to the bijou to watch ‘how to train your dragon 3’. did u watch 1 and 2?_ **

He doesn’t think Veronica Lodge watches animated movies, which is mainly why he asks. And if she doesn't, he’ll just pretend this wasn’t the groundwork for an invitation and carry on with his tedious Sunday.

Vegas has almost finished his bowl, when the phone vibrates in his hand. **_as a matter of fact, i did,_** Veronica answers. He stares at it for a couple of minutes until he’s brave enough to start typing a _proper_ invitation. He stops when he notices that she’s also typing. **_it's playing at six, wanna go?_**

Archie feels a smile tugging at his lips. Maybe they can be the kind of friends that have plans for the weekend.

 ** _sounds good,_** he writes, and adds a smiley emoji.

 

 

 

 

 

Smithers picks him up and drives them to Greendale. He doesn’t mention anything about the talk — the _almost_ talk — he had with Betty, and she thankfully doesn’t ask anything, either. Instead, they talk about the prequels of the movie they’re about to watch, and for a glorious twenty minutes, Archie forgets how terrible the past couple of days have been.

Archie remembers going to the movies with Veronica once during sophomore year, but they were in a group, complete with Betty, Jughead, Kevin, and, of course, Valerie. He remembers sitting between Veronica and Val and feeling slightly guilty for glancing more at the girl to his right than at the girl to his left, who was his girlfriend.

It’s just the two of them now, and Veronica sits to his right again. But this time he feels different around her, it’s easier.

She’s holding a giant cup of diet soda and one of her knees is pulled up to her chin — she’s wearing pants today, which is something he almost never sees her wearing when they’re at school. They’re made of burgundy leather. The blue light of the screen reflects on her dark hair.

The movie is funny and quite _romantic_ , which surprises him and makes him feel a little embarrassed, given recent events. But Ronnie seems comfortable, so he decides to relax, too, and get swept away by the plot. Once it's over and the lights are on, he notices that Veronica has smudges of mascara under her eyes. She catches Archie watching her, and they both laugh — he has tears in his eyes too.

“This final sequence was too much,” she admits, wiping her tears away. “But don’t worry, I’m not gonna tell anyone you cried.”

Archie sniffs and laughs at the same time. “Please. The whole town knows I cry watching movies. In fourth grade, the science teacher played the March of the Penguins, and I was bawling,” he says as he starts gathering their empty popcorn bags and soda cups. Veronica giggles. “I’d be more worried about your reputation.”

There are no signs of her crying, though, when he locks eyes with her again. Maybe because she’s smiling as they walk out the theater, making their way to the lobby. “Good thing I have one thing to use against you too, in case you tell anyone.” She lifts an eyebrow. It’s the first time she mentions the song, and Archie’s face inevitably goes red. But in the pink neon lights of the Bijou, he hopes that she can’t tell.

“Archie,” a familiar voice catches his attention. Archie turns around to see Kevin and his boyfriend, Moose Mason, who’s on the football team with Archie. Moose has his arm around Kevin’s shoulders, and they both have curious expressions on their faces. “And… Veronica. Hi!”

“Oh, hey, boys!” Veronica glances quickly at Archie and then back at Kevin and Moose. “Were you guys…?” She points behind her, to the general direction of the theater.

“Yeah. I can’t believe it’s the last movie! Did you cry?” Moose asks.

“I did,” Archie admits. He feels Veronica’s elbow poking at the side of his body. It makes him laugh, quietly. “Veronica is really tough though. She didn’t shed a tear,” he says, almost mockingly. Archie looks at Kevin and thinks he might be looking at him in a weird way, but it might just be his imagination. He thinks he’s becoming a little paranoid ever since what Reggie did.

“What can I say? I’m an ice queen,” she says, smiling in such a sweet way that anyone would believe her. Archie bites his lip to prevent himself from laughing more. In his peripheral vision, he can see that Kevin has knitted his eyebrows together.

 

 

 

 

 

Veronica is coincidentally the first person Archie sees when he gets to school, the next day. His dad’s truck has just left when her town car pulls up in front of the school’s building. Archie shoves his hands into his jacket pockets and decides that he might as well wait so they can walk to their lockers together — feels like the right thing to do, since they’re friends now, and not just _friendly_.

She’s wearing a white t-shirt with a patterned collar of black and pink flowers today, and she gives him an easy smile when she sees him. “Morning, Red Troubadour.”

Archie gives her an amused look, realizing that she’ll never stop teasing him about it. Well, at least she isn’t _questioning_ him. “Morning, Ronnie.”

“Did you manage to sleep, or were you still weeping?”

“Ouch, the gloves are off today.” He laughs. She opens her mouth to say something, when the motorbike roar interrupts them — Archie turns his head around and, perhaps out of habit, watches as Betty hops off Jughead’s bike and gives him his helmet back, leaning in to kiss him.

Yesterday, when Smithers drove him back home, he glanced up at Betty’s house, and her curtains were opened. However, they were shut again when Archie got to his room, and even if he had no intention of communicating with her, it still left him with a bitter taste in his mouth. Why was it _so hard_ to tell Betty the truth?

Betty and Jughead’s kiss lingers a little longer than it normally does, and she has her hands on his face, even though his are still on the handlebars. Archie looks down for a second, until he feels Veronica’s hand in the crook of his arm. It brings him back to reality. “C’mon,” she says, pulling him with her, “no staring.”

She only lets go of his arm once they’re inside the building.

 

 

 

 

 

Archie’s day is surprisingly ordinary. He and Reggie lock eyes in the hallway, but Archie just shakes his head in discontentment before turning the other way. Betty ignores him throughout the day, like he knew she would — Archie wishes she wasn’t upset, but it is what it is. At least, she’s still speaking to Veronica — he sees them talking and walking side by side to their AP lit class.

During lunch, he doesn’t even try to sit at the table he normally shares with Betty, Kevin, and Moose. He doesn’t sit with the Bulldogs either, choosing one of the largest tables in the cafeteria, where various people sit when they’re not feeling very social. Today, it’s him and about six other students who have their heads buried in books or headphones in their ears.

Veronica strolls by him at some point, and he only notices because he’s used to watching the sway of her hips as she walks by, even though it isn’t a very _gentleman_ -like thing to do. He can’t help but smile at her when their eyes meet, and she curls just one corner of her lips upward, before steering herself to Cheryl and Heather’s table.

As far as Monday morning goes, Archie’s wasn’t that bad. He knows his _real_ problem will start just after lunch, when he goes to lab and _really_ faces Betty.

As he walks down the hallway, he wishes with all his might that she chose another partner, just for today. Maybe next week they can talk this out and be the same, but not now. He’s always felt the need to be careful around Betty, with the words he said to her — she was tough, but she was also really fragile most of the time. Plus, Archie was just so fucking _clueless_.

The Fates were on his side, this time. When he walks into the lab, Betty is already there, but she’s sitting next to Josie, who’s telling her some tale in a low voice. Archie heaves out a breath, relieved, and quickly finds an empty stool next to Sheila Wu, who was Josie’s usual partner.

“What’s with the wife swap today?” Sheila asks. Archie isn’t sure if she’s pleased that he’s going to work with her today, but he decides that he doesn’t really care.

 

 

 

 

 

Archie’s day continues to be surprisingly ordinary — except that, as soon as the bell rings and he gets up to leave, (and his eyes accidentally meet Betty’s, and hers are wearing that same green gloom from Friday when they talked) he finds Veronica Lodge waiting for him outside class.

She grabs his wrist. “We need to talk,” she says and pulls him with her before the other students can even leave the lab. He follows, even though he’s confused. Okay, they _are_ friends, but he’s still not used to interacting _this much_ with her like he has the past few days. He’s surely _not_ used to her pulling him into places, like empty classrooms.

“What’s wrong?” Archie frowns. Did Betty say something to her? He thought Veronica had a free period on Monday afternoon.

She lets him go and closes the door behind her. “Everyone thinks we’re dating,” she says really quickly, in a breathy voice.

Archie looks at her for a long moment, trying to process what she just said. “What?”

“Everyone thinks we’re dating,” she repeats, loud and clear, and it takes Archie a beat to realize that _holy shit_ , she isn’t joking. “I don’t know who started the rumor— Kevin, probably. He saw us yesterday at the movies, and he’s a fucking _chismoso_.”

“A fucking chis… _What?_ ” Archie is _still_ really confused, but his brain is starting to pick up. This is too much. One day his songs are out, and he doesn’t even have time to get back on his feet when Kevin Keller starts a rumor that he and Veronica are a _thing_. “But we were—”

“Going out as friends, I know. But I look good, and so do you. We have some known history, and boys and girls in this school are _rarely_ just friends.”

Archie starts breathing faster. _What?_ is all that his brain can really think. _What_ — he’s friends with girls. He’s friends with Betty and Veronica, even though he wrote them both lyrics that could be easily mistaken for _love songs_ , and he’s friends with the other Pussycats, even though he probably did have a crush on each of them at some point, and— _fuck._

“Okay. Well, I guess we just need to tell them we’re not together.”

Veronica bites her lip, in a _weirdly_ apprehensive gesture, and Archie suddenly understands that there’s more that she wants to tell him.

“I found out because Chuck came to ask me. He asked if you and I were together, and I… kinda said we were,” she confesses, wincing a little. Archie feels his jaw dropping.

“Ronnie!”

“I _know_!” She lifts up her hands. “I know, and I’m sorry. I’ll take it back if you want me to. But I just— look, it will sound a little crazy, maybe a bad movie trope from the nineties’, like Pretty Woman, but why don’t we do this for a little while?”

“ _Pretty Woman?_ ” Archie asks, even if he knows this isn’t the most important part of everything she just said.

“Oh. You never watched it.” She makes a face. Archie widens his eyes. “ _Okay_ , not the point. Just listen to me. When Chuck and I broke up, I was really fucking angry at him because he seemed to be moving on _the very next day_ , like he didn’t give a shit about our relationship. And today, when he came asking about you, I felt so _good_ about myself. I just think if he really thinks that we’re together, he’ll—”

“You want to use me to make Chuck Clayton jealous?” Archie points at himself. He’s aware that his face is completely red, and he thinks he might be sweating on his neck.

“Not _jealous_. I don’t want to get back together with him. I just want to show him that I _can_ get over him in five minutes, like he did to me,” Veronica says it like it isn’t the most absurd logic someone has ever conjured. “And, technically, you used me first, when you kissed me in front of Betty.”

 _Betty_. The whole turmoil gets even more chaotic in Archie’s brain, and he can feel it, the red alarm of _panic mode_ starting to go off. “But I didn’t want to make Betty jealous. I just didn’t want her to think that—”

“Does it make a difference? You don’t want your inner Taylor Swift to cause trouble in the state of Bughead. And from what Betty told me earlier on, she’s really confused about what’s going on.”

“You talked to Betty about it?” he asks, exasperated. The scene that happened in his mind while they were at Jill’s — Cheryl and Veronica having a sleepover and analyzing his lyrics — comes back, except this time _Betty_ is also sitting on the bed. “What did you say?!”

“ _Nothing_. She didn’t even tell me about the song. She warned me that I should be careful if I wanted to start hanging out with you, because she isn’t sure what you’re feeling right now, which means she’s confused about your feelings _for her_. So I said ‘ _okay_ ’ and ignored her the rest of the day,” Veronica explains. Archie is sure that he’s making a face, because Veronica suddenly looks _annoyed_ by him. “What did you want me to say, Archie? It’s not like I could tell her to _chill_ because she’s only _one out of four_ who got a song.”

Archie runs both hands through his hair. “You’re right. This is my mess,” he sighs, “but what you’re proposing, I don’t— you’re Veronica Lodge. You can date anyone you want,” he says with blatant honesty. Veronica looks at him with a slight pout of her mouth, as if she’s absorbing the flattery, if even for a second.

She even smiles. Just a little. “I’m not in a place to date anyone for real. I thought that breaking up with Chuck would be easier, but now I just have all this _time_ on my hands. And I—” She crosses her arms in front of her chest, as if she’s stopping herself from talking _too much_. Archie sees it now, on the delicate lines of her face, all the ways he thought she was different after the breakup. She’s _lonely_. He gets the feeling. “Anyway, if we did this, it would help me get through this faster. Chuck would get off his high horse. And, bonus points, it would make Betty believe that you like me and not her, so she and Jughead can live happily ever after,” Veronica says. And then she twists her mouth. “How anyone wants to live happily ever after with Jughead Jones is _beyond_ me, but…”

“Ronnie,” Archie mutters. She’s made her points, but it still sounds like a bad idea. “I don’t know.”

“Why don’t we sleep on it? We both think about it, and if we’re up for it _tomorrow_ , we’ll let each other know. What do you say?”

 

 

 

 

 

He’s sitting at his desk doing his homework, but all he can think about is Veronica’s plan. It does sound _crazy_ , but what doesn’t, these days? 

The problem is mainly that Veronica listened to his song _four times_ , but she didn’t really get it. It took him months to bundle those words into phrases that made some sense and even sounded good together. It took him months to accept and explain that she walked into his life, made him dream about her, and then decided that they wouldn’t be together.

_this girl is only gonna break your heart._

He warned himself, back then. And now, even if he had gotten over her, would it be wise to _pretend_ to do something that he once wanted to do for real?

His thoughts are interrupted by the movement in Betty’s window. He had noticed that her curtains were opened, but she didn’t seem to be home. Now she is. And Jughead is with her.

Archie doesn’t want to watch anything that could happen between them, but then he realizes that Betty is _crying_. She’s trying to reach out to touch Jughead’s face, desperately saying something, and he’s pushing her hands away from him, that deep frown on his face that means he's _angry_. He has always made the same angry face, ever since they were little kids.

Archie’s heart starts beating faster. They’re _fighting_. Jughead says something pointing to _her window_ , and then turns around. He slams the door of her bedroom so hard that Archie can hear the _thump_ from his house, and Betty falls on her bed, sobbing.

 

 

 

 

 

The next day, he walks up to Veronica just before she starts cheer practice. He’s wearing his uniform too, since the Vixens and the Bulldogs will share the field, prepping for the game on Friday. Betty still isn’t there — he saw her during class, though, and she looked gloomy and really worn-out, her hair down for once. It just fuels his decision even more. 

Veronica is holding her blue and yellow pom-poms and stops shaking them when she realizes he’s coming closer. Archie can feel all eyes on him — the cheerleaders and the guys on the varsity team, they’re all watching him approach her. He’s sure it has something to do with the rumor that started yesterday.

“Hey,” he greets, making sure to keep his voice low, his throat feeling a little dry. “I got your text this morning.”

Veronica is wearing a different shade of lipstick today, a little more pink than usual. He notices because his eyes fall down to her lips when she parts them a little. “Okay,” she sets her pom-poms down, “and what’s your answer?”

He looks back up into her eyes before he can regret it. “Let’s do this.”

Veronica smiles at him in a way he thinks he’s seen before, but he just can’t remember when. She looks quickly to her side, where the guys from the team are pretending not to be watching, and before Archie can do _anything_ about it, she’s tip-toeing to grab his face between her hands and kiss him.

Archie is startled for the tiniest moment, but then he rests his hands where her neck meets her shoulders, not knowing how much he’s allowed to touch — and kisses her back, just for a little bit, just to make it believable. She pulls apart first, and Archie knows that his face is warm when she reaches out a hand and wipes her lipstick off his mouth.

“I’ll see you after practice,” she tells him in a somewhat sultry voice, and Archie swallows hard, nodding in agreement as he presses his lips together in a thin line.

Turning around to make his way back to where his teammates are, he can hear the girls giggling and whispering. He feels Cheryl Blossom’s knowing gaze on him. Reggie’s got his mouth opened in shock. And Chuck Clayton, who was also watching, narrows his dark eyes at him.

Archie can’t prevent a smug smile from appearing on his face.

 

 

 

 

 

In the locker room, after practice, Archie has just shrugged in a t-shirt when Reggie materializes by his side, still wearing a towel around his waist.

“I’m not talking to you,” Archie announces, baring his teeth.

“Dude. You and Veronica?” Reggie asks, but kind of looks around. Some guys from the football team are still in the room, but Chuck has left already. “Since when is this happening?!”

“Since none of your goddamn business,” Archie replies, angry. “I mean it, Mantle. I’m not talking to you,” he glares at Reggie, “and you know exactly why.”

Reggie scorns, as if Archie is just throwing a tantrum and this isn’t a big deal. “C’mon, man. I was just joking. If I had known you already started something with Lodge, I wouldn’t—”

Archie slams the locker door, and starts putting on his Riverdale High hoodie. “You wouldn’t _what_? You wouldn’t have broken into my phone, found things that were _private_ , and sent them out and put me in a horrible position just because you were pissed that I told you the truth?”

“Your passcode is 1, 2, 3, 4.”

“I swear to God, if you don’t stop talking to me—”

“I’m your friend! I was only trying to help you! All these times I was going on about OSB you would tell me you didn’t want to be with anyone, but I _knew_ you had feelings for someone! If I had known it was Lodge I wouldn’t have sent the other songs—”

“You’re not getting it,” Archie breathes out, exasperated, shoving his dirty clothes into his gym bag. “And you know what? Fuck you. I didn’t want to tell you anything because you’re just a jerk who can’t be trusted. Which is why you’re not only going to Cape Cod alone, you’re going to _end up_ alone.” He zips the bag a little more forcefully than needed. “We’re not friends.”

 

 

 

 

 

He’s still angry with Reggie when he meets Veronica at the school courtyard like they had agreed via text earlier on. He almost canceled this meeting, or whatever it is, but figured they needed to talk about their mutual decision before they actually start.

But his anger probably shows — because he tosses his gym bag on the table she chose, one that’s right under a big tree, and releases a big, annoyed breath once he throws himself down onto the bench next to her.

“Wow, don’t you look peachy?” she asks, tapping a pen on an open notebook.

“I’m okay,” Archie says, even though he’s clenching his jaw. He can see Veronica tilting her head to the side, her eyebrows up. The face she’s making gets him a little softer, and he ends up almost chuckling. “Don’t worry, it has nothing to do with you. Why did you want to meet?”

“Do I need a reason for wanting to be with my boyfriend?” she teases, her lips curling up. This time, Archie does chuckle. “I just thought we should go over our game plan. You know, set some ground rules, get our story straight.”

“Makes sense.” He rests his elbows on the edges of the table behind him, his face turned towards Veronica, who starts writing something in her notebook.

“Okay. How and when did we get together?” she asks, tapping the pen on her chin as she thinks. He opens his mouth to say something, but she interrupts him and starts reciting, “We obviously have history from sophomore year, and you’ve been carrying a torch this entire time. When Chuck and I broke up, you finally had a chance to ask me out, and I said yes. We’ve been seeing each other ever since.”

Archie looks over at her, slightly impressed with the accuracy of this fake-story. In fact, if she added the part about him getting over her at some point, it would be just like reality. “Okay. That’s easy to remember,” he says, breathing in. Veronica proceeds to write down what she just said.

“The only problem is that you uploaded the video to Betty only a couple of weeks ago.” She stops writing and glances at him.

“Only you and Betty know about this, though,” he says. The sun is streaming through the leaves, making patterns around Veronica’s head, kinda like a halo. “I don’t think she’s going to tell anyone at school.”

“Would _she_ believe that you like me when you were writing songs about her just the other day?” Veronica asks, looking away. Archie thinks about explaining, _again_ , that he only wrote that song so he could say goodbye, but he knows deep inside that Veronica isn’t the one who he owes that explanation to. He closes his mouth, and Veronica just shrugs. “I guess the whole point of us doing this is to make her believe that, so. Let’s just stick with the story.”

“Alright.” Archie bites the inside of his cheek, waiting for her to finish writing. His mouth feels a little dry, so he reaches for a bottle of water inside his gym bag.

“ _Muy bien,_ ” Veronica draws a line under the small paragraph. “Now, onto the rules. I think the first one is, obviously, no sex. We shouldn’t be fake-banging,” she says, all nonchalant. Archie chokes on his water. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” He coughs in response, trying to recover his composure. “Agreed.”

“Good. It wasn’t really negotiable, by the way.” She points the pen at him, and Archie coughs again, helpless. It makes her laugh. She writes this as the first rule. “We can kiss every now and then if we’re in public. It will make it more believable.”

He nods, thinking that he can do this with no problem, a small kiss every now and then, like the one they shared in the field just a couple of hours ago. Archie has kissed a lot of girls in his life, and it doesn’t need to mean something, every time. “Sure.”

“Okay, now that we narrowed the physical stuff down, we need to be seen together every weekend. _You know_ that if we’re not together every weekend, people will get very suspicious.”

“I don’t mind spending time with you,” he says, honestly. Ronnie looks up at him, a small crease between her eyebrows. Archie shrugs. “We can hang out at my house, too. My dad would be up for it.”

She smiles, seeming pleased when she writes that down. “While we’re at it, I’m going to make you watch _Pretty Woman_ ,” she warns him. “Oh, and _Casablanca_.”

When she finishes writing, Archie reaches out and grabs the notebook and the pen from her hands. He rests the notebook on his thigh. “We need to leave the football games together,” he says, writing it as item number five when she agrees. His handwriting is terrible next to Veronica’s.

“Can you write down that under no circumstances we can tell _anyone_ that this relationship is fake? It would be way too humiliating for the both of us.”

“First rule of the Fight Club,” he says as he writes _no snitching!!!_ next to item number six.

“What?”

“You do not talk about the—” he starts, but then stops, looking at her to realize that she has no idea what he means right now. “Wait, are you serious? You’ve never seen _Fight Club_?” Archie asks, a surprised grin on his face — it’s probably the first time he knows something Veronica doesn’t.

She shakes her head. “Nope.”

“No way! Look, I’ll watch _Pretty Woman_ with you, but you _have_ to watch _Fight Club_ with me,” he says, weirdly excited as he adds that to the list of movies they had already agreed on.

Veronica takes the notebook and the pen back from him. “We need to go to all the parties we get invited to, together.” She writes this as the seventh item. “Including the Spring Formal.”

Archie frowns. “That’s like, two months away from now. Do you think we’ll still be doing this, by then?”

Veronica ponders. “Let’s call it a… _contingency_. If we are still doing this by the time it comes around, you’re taking me as your date.”

“In that case,” Archie starts, only because he’s _certain_ that by the time it comes around, this thing with Ronnie will be ancient history. How could it not be? Betty would forget about his song in no time, and she and Jughead would be just fine again. Chuck Clayton would _definitely_ not take too long to get jealous of them. “ _If_ I’m your date to the Spring Formal, you’ll go with me to Cape Cod, the next day.”

She doesn’t take too long to curl her lips upwards in a delighted smile. “We can always get a twin room,” she says, pleased, adding _Spring Break_ to the list. Archie smiles too. He’s sure that it’s not gonna happen, but at least for a little while, he can shove it in Reggie’s face that he’s going on the trip with a beautiful girl while Reggie has _no one_. He feels a _little_ guilty for being so petty but not enough to regret it. Veronica draws two lines and signs one of them, handing the notebook so Archie can sign it too. “We have a deal.”

They shake on it.

 

 

 

 

 

As soon as his dad drops him off at school the next morning, Archie gets a text from Veronica asking him to wait for her so they can walk to class together. She adds a winky emoji to that request, and Archie catches himself chuckling at his phone.

 ** _pls hurry, i can’t wait to go to trig,_** he jokes, sitting on the fence as he waits for her. He looks around and waves at students who tell him good morning. Some don’t say anything at all — girls from the Vixen squad, like Ginger Lopez and Tina Patel, walk past him and start to giggle. For a second, Archie wonders _why_ they’d be doing this, since it feels like nothing’s changed, but then it certainly comes back to his mind.

Yesterday, after they agreed on their terms and went their separate ways, Archie didn’t really think about what their arrangement would imply. He was still angry at Reggie, and, when he noticed that Betty’s curtains were closed again, he got angry at _himself_ for even writing that stupid song to her. Maybe he was even a little angry at Jughead for storming off the day before and for making Betty cry. And the fact that it could be _his_ fault just made everything worse.

And _now_ , girls are giggling, and guys are pointing at him with their chins because they _know_ he’s “hooking-up” with Veronica Lodge.

No, _scratch that_. He’s Veronica Lodge’s _boyfriend_.

( _fake-_ boyfriend, but still.)

_Wow._

A few minutes later, a black town car slows down smoothly in the driveway. Veronica walks out and looks immaculate as always, wearing shorts and thigh high boots with no tights. He has to make a conscious effort not to look at her legs — it isn’t right to do that, anymore. She’s carrying a tray with two paper cups on it, and she smiles when she sees him. Archie gets up to meet her halfway.

“ _Buenos días,_ boyfriend.” Veronica says in that perpetually playful way of hers. “I don’t know how you take your coffee, so I brought you cocoa.” She hands out the tray so he can take one of the cups. Someone wrote _Archiekins_ with a black marker on it. Archie snickers. “Mine is black with two sugars, by the way.”

“Noted,” Archie says. He looks at her for a moment too long, wondering if this is a _kissing in public_ situation. He’d always give Val a peck when he first met her in the morning. But then Veronica quickly looks around, as if she’s scanning the area, and brings her coffee cup to her lips. Archie clears his throat. “Do you really think this will work?” he asks, taking a sip of the cocoa she brought him.

“Of course, it will.” Veronica doesn’t seem to have one ounce of doubt on her mind. She takes one step closer to him and starts pulling at one of the strings on his hoodie, as if trying to make it even with the other. “Everyone will be talking about us for the next couple of weeks, until something else happens and we’re old news. But remember that we have a target audience. No one else matters.”

She says it in such a secure way. It sort of reminds Archie of when his mom still worked from home — spending hours and hours ruffling through paperwork at the dining room table while he played video games in the living room, only realizing that Archie hadn’t done his homework when his dad stepped through the front door. She used to talk to her clients the exact, same way Veronica talked to him.

He just nods, a small grin on his lips, and offers her his hand. “So, let’s go?” he asks. Archie knows that she’s going to choreograph every single situation, but he thinks that he can add one or two details of his own.

Veronica smiles, taking his hand. “You really do love trig, huh?”

 

 

 

 

 

Archie and Veronica walk hand-in-hand down the hallways of Riverdale High. He’s still drinking the cocoa she brought him. Over the rim of his paper cup, Archie can notice all eyes on them. He sees Kevin’s jaw dropping to the ground. He sees Reggie shaking his head and going back to his locker, bitter. Heather Higgs lowers her prescription glasses. Evelyn Evernever holds onto Melody’s arm, and he can see the latter hold her breath. Valerie is definitely going to hear about this — her friends probably have her new number. 

He never thought that walking hand-in-hand with someone would have such an effect on people, but he supposes he never pretended to be Veronica Lodge’s boyfriend before.

They get to her locker, and he takes her empty coffee cup so he can throw them away. While she takes her books, Archie does a double take on their surroundings to search for the _target audience_. He can’t find Betty anywhere — which is odd, since today is Wednesday and she rides with Jughead — but Chuck is there, a few lockers away, waiting for Josie to get her books.

He doesn’t know if Veronica has seen them yet. He’s debating if he should say something about it to her, when she leans a hand on his forearm. “Do you want me to sit with you and Betty at lunch?” she asks. Archie looks away from where Chuck is peeking at them. “Or maybe we can sit just the two of us and let them wonder for a little bit longer?”

“We can play it by ear.” Archie wants to tuck her hair behind her ear or do something just so Chuck can see it, even if Veronica hasn’t noticed his presence, but he’s still holding the empty cups.

“Okay,” she says, closing her locker and getting closer so she can plant a kiss right on the corner of his mouth. Archie is a little caught off guard, and his breath catches in his throat. “I’ll see you later.”

When Veronica walks away with the waves of her hair bouncing down her shoulders, she glances at Chuck and Josie as she passes them, and Archie understands that all that just happened was perfectly calculated.

 

 

 

 

 

It’s pouring in the afternoon. It’s a bummer — the weather seems to go back and forth these days. Archie stands under the overhang, wondering how the hell he’s going to get home without getting soaked. He obviously doesn’t have an umbrella with him. Not that one would do much. 

He would’ve asked Veronica for a ride with Smithers, but she warned him during their first fake-official lunch that she’d leave later since she had to work on a project. It was weird that she made sure to make him know every step of her day, almost as if she owed him an explanation. It was also weird that he felt like he needed to do the same. They spent lunch talking about their daily routines, possible ride arrangements, their schedules.

(Veronica held his hand over the table while she spoke, for show, her thumb stroking his skin every now and then — it was probably something she used to do while holding Chuck’s hand. Archie concentrated very hard on what she was saying. Over her shoulder, he could see Betty at their usual table, resting her chin on her hand while picking at her food without eating anything. He didn’t catch her throwing any glances at them.)

Anyway, he couldn’t ask Veronica for a ride. In other circumstances, he would ask Reggie to drive him, but now he’d rather drown in the rain than talking to Reggie again. He had two choices: call his father only to know that he was still in the construction site or run and hope to get the bus.

He sighs, placing his hoodie over his head. He’s about to leave when someone opens a big umbrella by his side — it’s Polly Cooper, Betty’s older sister who was in senior year.

“Oh, hey, Archie!” She greets him with a sweet smile. Polly and Betty were very different people, but they carried the same caring energy. Of course, he’d always been closer to Betty, but Polly grew up next to his house just as much. “Do you need a ride? Jason is driving me home.”

Despite everything that happened between them during that summer, Jason and Polly got back together. He remembers feeling a little shocked when he saw them kissing against her locker one day, shortly after _that_ Back to School dance. He wondered briefly about their rekindling, if Polly told him the truth, if their families would accept. Maybe that’s how people felt when they saw him and Veronica walking hand-in-hand, this morning.

“Uh,” he means to say _no thanks_ , but lightning strikes across the grey sky and the rain increases. “If it’s not a problem.”

“You live right next to me,” she shrugs, and grabs him by the arm so they can fit together under the umbrella. They laugh as they avoid the water puddles on their way to the parking lot, where Jason is already waiting for them in the car.

Jason.

 _And Betty_.

Archie stops dead in his tracks when he sees that she’s there too, in the backseat, the side of her head against the closed window. Polly reaches out for the passenger’s door and gets in, leaving him with the umbrella.

“Archie needs a ride too,” she tells her boyfriend.

“Actually, I —”

“Hi, Arch!” Jason says, waving at him. Archie looks into the window and sees that Betty has lifted up her head and fixed her posture, sitting tall. He looks around, looking for something that will get him _out_ of this situation, but there’s _nothing_. “Come on in, man!”

 

 

 

 

 

Betty says _hi_ when he gets inside the car, but Jason asks him something about football practice before he can even respond to her. The drive from Riverdale High to Elm Street is not so long, but Jason is being extra cautious given the rain. 

It feels like they stop at every possible red sign. At one of them, Polly reaches out and places one hand on Jason’s leg — to what he reacts by leaning over the handbrake to give her a kiss. To witness the combination of Jason’s red hair and Polly’s blonde hair makes him feel _weird_. He swallows, quickly looking over at Betty, who’s shifting uncomfortably on her side of the backseat.

“Pol, Betty told me about Dartmouth,” Archie says just so he can shift his focus, clearing his throat. “Congratulations! Are you going to New Hampshire, then?”

“Thanks, Archie. But we don’t know yet,” she says, turning around a little so she can look at him in the backseat. He can see Jason nodding. “We both applied to Pennsylvania, so if we both get in there, it’s our choice.”

“Even though mom will kill her if she doesn’t go to Dartmouth,” Betty says, and Archie can see her biting her lip, almost as if she shouldn’t have said anything.

“Will you let me have plans for the future _with_ my boyfriend?!” Polly asks, sharply, even though Jason places a hand on top of hers, probably to stop her from talking. Apparently, this has been a conversation that the Cooper sisters already had before. Archie grinds his teeth, immediately regretting saying anything. “Don’t you think so, Archie? Tell Betty that you and Veronica also think about each other when you’re choosing this stuff? She’s delusional if she thinks Jughead—”

“Huh,” Archie feels his face heat up, avoiding looking at Betty at all costs. He could _feel_ her body going stiff when Polly mentioned Veronica.

“Oh, that’s right, Archie—” Jason says, looking at him through the rear-view mirror, and he’s got a look in his eyes that says _help me out here._ “You and Veronica, huh?”

With all the windows closed and the rain still pouring outside, Archie can’t see any way out of this. Betty seems a bit annoyed, maybe with Polly, maybe with the subject, but that’s _exactly_ why he started doing this — so she would believe that he had no feelings for her. “Yeah.” He bites the inside of his cheek, thinking about something to say, something that wouldn’t give away their arrangement. “It’s kinda recent, but she’s amazing. I like her a lot.”

It’s better if he says something that’s at least partially true so he won’t get caught in his lies — Veronica _is_ amazing, and he does like her a lot, even if not _like_ like anymore. It seems to work. Polly brings her hand to her chest and smiles sweetly as she says _aww_ and Jason smiles, pleased. He can see, in his peripheral vision, Betty biting her lower lip and looking out the window.

“I approve, Archie. She and Chuck just weren’t happy anymore,” Polly says. Archie remembers the sleepover Veronica had with her and Betty, the day after she and Chuck broke up, and wonders what she said to the Cooper sisters about it. “She really does deserve someone like you. Don’t you think, Betty?”

“Yes,” Betty answers, almost immediately, turning to Archie. “I’m happy for you two,” she smiles a little. And the thing is — Archie thinks that she’s genuinely happy for them, but it doesn’t erase that confusion that’s still written on her face. Their eyes end up meeting, and he _hates_ that glow on her irises. It’s almost as if she doesn’t believe him, as if she sees right through him, as if she’s asking him again, the question he didn’t let her finish, the other day at his porch: _how are you suddenly writing songs about me, if_ —

Just in time, Jason pulls over in front of the girls’ house. “Here we are! Safe, sound and dry.”

“Thanks for the ride, J,” Betty is the one who says, grabbing her stuff and getting out the car. Polly says something about the umbrella, but her sister is already running to the front door so she can avoid the rain. Archie sighs.

He’s got nothing to say to her, as much as she’d want him to.

 

 

 

 

 

_tbc_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> heeey! OMG, i can't believe the amazing response this fic got. really, it made me so happy, you guys have no idea. i hope you enjoy chapter two as well. you've been so receptive and nice, i'm really grateful.
> 
> i wanted to give special thanks to nic, my beta, who's the very best of the bests, to AK who also holds my hand through the process of writing this fic, and to milly who wrote the rules down in a notebook so i could make a moodboard lol. thank you, girls!
> 
> the varchiedale ficathon ended but the fics will continue to be updated and i hope to get the 3rd chapter up next week. i am dying to know what you guys think about this installment, and the varchie finally playing out. oh, some bughead tension too, but why is it? mmm.
> 
> love you. songs for this chapter:
> 
>   * Thinking Bout You - Frank Ocean (beginning of the chapter)
>   * Dancing On My Own - Robyn
>   * Easy Love - LAUV
> 



	3. Chapter 3

_it's such a rollercoaster_  
_some killer queen, you are_

 

::  
::  
::

 

Archie doesn’t talk to Betty again for a while, even though he catches her watching him and Veronica having lunch together the next day. For all the weirdness between them, at least she doesn’t seem to be mad at Ronnie, which would be completely unfair. He wants to ask Veronica if they talked about him, if Betty asked any questions or told her anything. But he’s afraid that it will come off poorly, he just keeps it to himself. 

On Friday morning, his dad has to leave early to buy some equipment in Albany, so Archie stops at Pop’s before school to get some breakfast. He eats quickly, and orders two coffees to-go: a latte for him and a black with two sugars, for Veronica. It seems like a nice thing to do, since she’s been providing the caffeine since they “started dating,” two days ago.

When he sees her at school, she’s in the courtyard with Cheryl Blossom. The redhead is sitting on the table while Veronica’s on the bench, her head next to Cheryl’s knees as Cheryl braids Veronica's hair into half up boxer braids. Archie wonders if he should approach them — he was hoping to avoid Cheryl for quite some time — but when Veronica spots him and waves at him, there’s no way out.

“Good morning, boyfriend,” Veronica greets when he gets closer, a genuine — albeit _slightly_ teasing — smile on her lips. Cheryl looks at him with one eyebrow up and a smirk.

“Morning,” Archie says, halfheartedly, a little embarrassed to be doing this in front of Cheryl. It’s their first _real_ interaction with a third-person and not just for someone to watch from afar, and Cheryl has always known _too much_. “I brought us coffee.” He hands over her paper cup, the one marked with _Ronnie_ and a heart that the waitress thought she should add. “Black with two sugars.”

Veronica accepts the cup and offers him a sweet smile when she sees the script on the cup. She looks nice with the new hairstyle. “You remembered.” She wrinkles her nose, causing Archie’s stomach to flip in a weird way. “Thanks, Archiekins.”

She glances at him for a moment too long, and Archie feels like it’s _definitely_ a “kiss in public” moment. He would kiss her now, if she was his real girlfriend, and if he waits too long the moment will pass. Cheryl might find it weird if he doesn’t do anything, and that’s the real reason why Archie leans in and presses his lips against Veronica’s.

It doesn’t last two seconds, but Cheryl clears her throat. He wonders if he lingered too much, his face getting warm when he pulls away.

“If you like lattes you can have mine, Cheryl,” Archie tries, offering her his own cup.

“I don’t drink dairy,” she says, as if it’s something _so obvious_ and Archie is a terrible person for not knowing. Then, she bats her eyelashes at Veronica, jumping off the table. “I’ll see you at the game. Don’t forget to wear blue eyeshadow. And you, _Archiekins_ ,” she turns to Archie, her lovable expression immediately fading, “try not to suck on the field, today.”

He chuckles and sits by Veronica’s side as Cheryl walks away. They both drink their coffees before she bumps her shoulder with his. “Nice job. And nice timing, too. Cheryl was just mentioning that she wasn’t sure if she bought me going from Chuck to you so fast, so you, being all cute, definitely helped.”

If Archie’s face wasn’t red after kissing her, it definitely is now. He can feel the heat on his cheeks and takes a sip of his coffee instead of finding something to say.

“I don’t know _why_ people would think it’s fast, though. It’s not like he _waited_ more than fifteen minutes to start hanging out with Josie.” She heaves out an annoyed sigh. “I heard they’re going to the Mallmart parking lot together, after the game today, so we have to be there.”

Archie bites his lip, feeling a little _stupid_ for some _non-existent_ reason. “We’ll be there.”

“Okay. I’m going to secure us a ride with Kevin and Moose,” she says, getting up, seeming pleased with their mutual decision. “Thanks for the coffee. I’ll remember you take yours with milk. Sugar?”

She looks at him with such sincere curiosity that Archie forgets whatever made him feel dumb just a second ago. “About three,” he answers, and she tilts her head.

“Hm, too sweet _._ But I guess that’s fitting,” she says, arching one eyebrow. Archie chortles. “See you later, lover boy.” 

 

 

 

 

 

The Bulldogs win the game. It’s an easy victory, even though the field is still a bit muddy from the rain, the other day. Chuck, their captain, congratulates all the players, one-by-one, as he usually does.

“Great game, Andrews,” Chuck says, punching Archie’s arm. It’s a bit too hard for it to be an entirely congratulatory gesture. Archie knits his eyebrows together, nodding, but only rubs the sore spot once Chuck turns around.

He can see Reggie approaching his locker, which is just next to Archie’s. “So, are you heading to Mallmart, later?” he asks. Archie can see that Reggie _genuinely_ thinks that his actions could be undone with a half-assed approach, and only throws him an irritated look, slamming his locker door before hitting the showers.

 

 

 

 

 

Archie leaves the locker room and is surprised to see Veronica there, _with Betty_. They’re both still in their cheer uniforms, and Veronica is wearing her hair in a ponytail too, only she still has the top of her head braided. She smiles when she sees him, touching Betty’s arm for a second before _jumping_ to hug him, her arms winding around his neck. “Hey, you! Congratulations!” she says, chirpy, giving him the quickest of kisses. 

He holds her by the waist, unsure as he looks over to see Betty in the background. She has her arms crossed in front of her chest, and she’s staring at her feet. “Thanks,” he answers and looks back at Veronica with inquisitive eyes.

She’s wearing blue eyeshadow, like Cheryl instructed earlier. It’s glittery and frames her eyes nicely when she squints them a bit, trying to silently tell him that _it’s okay_. She grabs his hand and pulls him towards their best friend. “Are you coming with us to Mallmart, Betty?”

“No, guys. If I go out with you, my mom won’t let me see Jug tomorrow,” Betty says. Archie doesn’t know if she quickly peaks at his and Veronica’s hands together, or if it’s just his imagination, but he can tell that she seems a bit uncomfortable around them. “Have fun, though. Nice game, Arch.”

Betty turns around to leave, and Veronica lets go of his hand as soon as she’s out of sight. “Uh,” Archie scratches the back of his neck, “what was that for?”

“Before the game started, I’m pretty sure that Betty was trying to tell me _again_ to be careful because she’s not sure you like me _for real_ ,” Veronica says. Archie knows that this is probably their biggest issue: getting Betty to believe that his feelings for Veronica are real even though he was just writing a song about her only a couple of weeks ago. “So, I thought that she should see us interacting from up-close. I’m not sure if it _worked_ , but it will. Sooner or later, she’s going to believe that you’re crazy about me and that whatever you sang to her was just a fever dream.”

 

 

 

 

 

Maybe _all of it_ is a fever dream, Archie thinks when he’s resting his back against the bumper of Kevin’s truck, hands inside his letterman jacket pockets as he watches Veronica laugh out loud with the other Vixens, drinking a mix of vodka and lemon soda, leaving lipstick stains on the plastic rim.

She ignores him for most of the time, making him wonder why they need to be there together if they’re not going to hang out. But he makes the most out of it, drinking beer, catching up with the guys, and purposely staying away from all the circles he sees Reggie or Chuck in. At some point, Veronica approaches him, suddenly wrapping her arms around his waist. “Hi. I think I’m a little tipsy,” she says, snuggling her face on his chest. It’s _totally_ normal for couples to cuddle like this, so Archie has no other option but to throw one arm around her and bite the inside of his bottom lip.

“Do you want to go home? I could—” he stops. He’s not sure _what_ he could do, since he doesn’t have a car and they got here with Kevin and Moose, who have suddenly disappeared. “I could tell you to call Smithers so he can drive us back.” He laughs when he feels her giggle inside his half-embrace. She’s so much smaller than him, especially without heels — he needs to lower his head a little so his chin can rest on top of her head. 

“I might do that,” she says, quietly. Archie nods but doesn’t move. It’s been a while since he has held someone like this.  Veronica’s body is tiny, warm, and soft. She smells so good. He almost closes his eyes.

 

 

 

 

 

When he gets home, Betty has her curtains open and her lights on. He can see her tucked under the covers, a book on her hand and a distant expression on her face, as if she isn’t paying much attention on her words.

Archie looks away, reaching for his phone to find a new message from Veronica.

**_are you sure we can hang out at your place tomorrow?_ **

He ends up smiling to himself. **_i’ll check with dad but yes, be here around 6. which movie?_**

**_fight club. it will help to keep our standards low._ **

Archie laughs, shaking his head. **_if u like it, you’re buying me a milkshake._**

 ** _or i'll just lie and say i hated it_** , she types back, and then sends him a kissy emoji and a waving hand.

Archie locks his phone, glancing at Betty’s window again. She looks lonely. Archie knows that Jughead will come in the morning, but it’s still too many hours from now. He feels a little bad for being out there with Ronnie while he could be hanging out with Betty, being her best friend — except he wrote her a song that got her all confused, and now they probably can’t be friends anymore, not until she believes that he doesn’t have feelings for her.

Archie sighs, closing his own curtains.

 

 

 

 

 

Veronica has been to his house before. However, much like when they went to the movies _before_ , it was different. Archie’s dad was out of town for the occasion — in Chicago of all places, finalizing divorce papers that were two years overdue — and Betty wanted to use his living room to throw a surprise birthday party for Jughead, which was a bad idea even before the rest of the town found out about it and showed up at Archie’s door with beer kegs.

He saw Veronica twice during the party: first making out with Chuck in the middle of the living room and second giggling when a drunk Archie — who was tired of watching Jughead fighting with Betty because he didn’t like the party, and even more tired of trying to figure out why Valerie was mildly annoyed at him — said that he was happy she came and offered her a drink.

 _Isn’t the New York sophisticate supposed to corrupt the sweet small-town boy?_ she asked with a kink of her eyebrow before taking the rum bottle from his hand, and that was the only time they spoke that day.

On Saturday, a little before six, Archie finds himself wondering if she remembers the inside of his house, the blue of the couch and the teal of the green walls. She never seemed like the kind of girl who would fit in a small-town, two-story house with a backyard grill and a dog running around.

Thinking about that, Archie gets the pet hair remover that he has definitely only used once or twice in his life and starts removing Vegas’s fur from the couch when his dad walks into the living room. “Are you… cleaning up?” he asks, dumbfounded.

“Uh,” Archie feels the blood rush to his cheeks, “a little, yeah. I’m gonna have a…” he stops. He and Veronica hadn’t discussed if they’d say something to their families, so he decides to play safe. “A friend over to watch a movie,” he tells his father. “That’s okay, right?”

“Of course, kiddo. Who’s coming? Betty and Jughead? Reggie?” Fred asks distractedly, clasping his watch around his wrist. He looks slightly dressed up, like he’s going somewhere.

“No,” Archie says, smoothing down the couch now that it’s clean of fur. He places the pillows back in place and grabs the extra blankets he brought in case she got cold. “Veronica Lodge?”

He says it the most nonchalant way he can, but it makes Fred look up at him, wrinkling his forehead with a curious expression on his face. “Hermione’s daughter, right. She was here the other day, looking for you.”

“Hermione Lodge?” Archie frowns confused for a second. Then, he remembers that Veronica searched for him in his house the day he was hiding and that his father pointed her to Jill’s. “Oh, Ronnie. Of course. _Duh._ ”

Fred laughs, shaking his head. “The idea of Hermione Lodge stopping by is kind of hilarious,” he says. “She and I dated for a little while when we were your age. I had it bad for her, always trying to woo her. I saved up change in this piggy bank since middle school and before prom, I broke it so I could buy her a silver bracelet.” Fred’s voice is full of blissful nostalgia. Archie knits his eyebrows together, smiling a little — he knew that Veronica’s parents were from Riverdale, which is why she and her mom moved here after the divorce, but he couldn’t _imagine_ that their parents could’ve been _connected_ in some way.

Archie sits on the couch armrest, amused. “What happened to you guys?”

“Well, Hiram Lodge showed up with a _diamond_ bracelet.” Fred rolls his eyes, making Archie snort. “Those were fun times, though. Hermione was a blast. I’m sure that Veronica is a great kid.”

“She’s nice, yeah.”

“Of course, she can come over. I’m heading out for a bit.” Fred seems to return from memory lane. “Gonna play some pool with Marcus and maybe some of the guys,” he says, getting his wallet and handing Archie a couple of tens. “If you two want to order some pizza.”

“Thanks, Dad,” Archie says. It’s nice that his dad’s new crew invites him to stuff. Fred has been a bit of a loner ever since his mom left, so long ago. “Have fun.”

“You too.” Fred starts to head out but turns around before he reaches the door. “Not _too much_ fun, though,” he warns Archie. “I will be back unexpectedly.”

 

 

 

 

 

When Veronica arrives and sits on the couch, all of his cleaning turns out to be useless — Vegas is so eager to meet a new friend that he immediately jumps between them, wiggling his tail in Archie’s face, while curiously sniffing Veronica.

She’s laughing, and Archie’s happy that she isn’t scared or disgusted. Still, he tries to maintain _some_ order. “Okay, Vegas, you like her. Now can you—” He helplessly tries to reach the dog’s collar. Vegas licks Veronica’s face, making her squeal. “Jesus! Get down! Sorry, Ronnie.”

“I don’t really mind him.” Veronica breathes in the middle of a laugh as she wipes the side of her face, when Archie finally manages to steer Vegas through the kitchen and to the backyard, repeatedly calling him a _good boy._ Even so, the labrador whines and scratches the door once he’s locked out. “Poor thing.”

“Don’t worry, this will last three seconds before he gets distracted by something else,” Archie says, throwing himself next to her, back on the couch. It happens as he says — Vegas barks once and then stops, probably running to play with a toy left in the backyard or something. Veronica, however, pouts a little. “We’ll get him back inside once you’re not _news_ anymore,” he says. It doesn’t change the look on her face. “Look, he’s not gonna let us watch the movie.”

“Fine,” she says, crossing her legs and arms. Archie feels a smile coming to his lips, because she looks like a small, bratty kid. He remembers the conversation with his father, earlier on. “What?” She frowns when she notices the way he’s looking at her.

“When I told my dad you were coming over, he told me this tale about how he and your mom used to date in high school.” Archie chuckles.

“ _What?!_ ” Veronica’s mouth hangs open. “No way!” Archie nods, and Veronica laughs, impressed. “Well, well. History fake-repeats itself,” she concludes, finally uncrossing her arms and sitting a little more comfortably on the couch, pulling her legs up. There’s a Vegas-sized space between them, but her feet are closer to the side of his thighs now. She’s wearing shorts with black, thick tights underneath, her boots forgotten on the floor.

Archie looks straight ahead so he doesn’t stare at her legs. “Guess we could’ve been siblings,” he teases.

“Oh, my God, e _w_!” Veronica hides her face in her hands. “Can you just play this movie already?” She sounds falsely annoyed. Archie can’t hold back his grin.

 

 

 

 

 

Later, when his father is back and Veronica is long gone, Archie is already getting into bed when a notification pops up on his phone.

 ** _first rule of the fight club: brad pitt’s abs,_** and a string of heart emojis that makes Archie roll his eyes, suddenly a little annoyed. He can’t believe that _this_ is the only thing she appreciated about the movie.

(Okay, he knew it wasn’t and that she’s only _kidding_ , but _still_.)

Impulsively, he goes to his camera roll and sends her the latest shirtless mirror selfie he took to track his fitness progress, for some reason feeling the need to show that _he’s got abs, too_. He immediately regrets doing so, but she must have his chat window open because it shows as _seen_.

Archie sinks his head into the pillow, embarrassed. He can see that she’s typing and stopping, probably unsure of what to say after being bombarded with a _half-nude_ of her _fake-boyfriend_ , so he decides to beat her to the punch.

 ** _striving to get there, lol,_** he says, adding the last three letters just to make it seem like he’s funny even though he’s only an idiot.

Veronica keeps typing and stopping for the next thirty seconds when his phone finally vibrates on his hand.

 ** _wow, lockscreen!_** he thinks she’s joking and doesn’t know how to reply to that.

 

 

 

 

 

The next morning, Veronica invites him to breakfast at Pop’s. Archie’s first instinct is to _decline_ — he’s still mortified over his _selfie incident_ , from last night, but this is actually what prompts him to get up, shower, and walk to the diner. Having breakfast with her like a _good boyfriend_ is the least he can do. 

She’s already there when he arrives, and he notices that maybe she’s been there for a _while:_ there’s an empty coffee mug in front of her, and she’s actually half-way through a book, her face as makeup free as he’ll ever see it, her dark-framed reading glasses on.

He shoves his hands into his sweatshirt’s pockets, chewing on his lower lip and just watching her for a moment, when he realizes _why_ she asked him to come — sitting at the counter, chatting over scrambled eggs and toast, are Josie and Melody. They stop talking when they notice that Archie just walked in — they both give him a nod and a ‘ _hey, it's our best friend’s ex-boyfriend’_ smile of recognition.

Archie smiles back. Before Val left and they were still dating, he used to hang out a lot with the Pussycats, even jammed with them when Josie was in a particularly good mood. But now, they’re essentially strangers again. He figures that pretending to be with Veronica to distract Chuck from his thing with Josie is not going to help the rekindling.

He takes a deep breath and walks to Ronnie’s table, already feeling his cheeks warm up because the last time _she_ saw him, he was shirtless in a picture. She looks up at him, a sweet smile on her lips. “Hey, you’re late!” she greets, talking louder than she needs to, setting the book down and reaching out to hold his wrist.

Archie is confused for a second before he understands that this is just so Josie and Melody think they had plans all along, like a normal couple. He sighs before saying, “I’m sorry. I had to walk Vegas before coming,” which is purely a lie.

“No problem.” Veronica shakes her head and pulls him to sit by her side. He does that, quickly glancing at the girls before resting one arm behind Veronica. When he looks at her again, he’s slightly startled to see her face a little closer to his than it was before. “Good morning,” she says, placing her thumb under his chin and bringing his face closer to hers, kissing him.

Archie closes his eyes, pressing his lips to hers with his eyebrows knitted together, not sure if fake-public-good-morning-kisses should linger, or if she’s supposed to run her hand up his jawline. She tastes like coffee. He feels a strange urge to pull her bottom lip between his lips, but she pulls apart before he can even realize that it would be a bad idea.

“Morning,” he says, still frowning, especially when she reaches out to wipe lipgloss off his mouth. Was that even in the contract?

If Veronica notices his astonishment, she doesn’t show it, grabbing a menu like nothing ever happened. “I’m starving. I’m having waffles. What do you want?”

Archie clears his throat. “Uh. Eggs? Bacon?” He removes the arm that was behind her, taking the menu from her hand, staring at it like he’s never seen it before, even though Pop’s probably hasn’t changed its menus since the fifties. “Eggs and bacon. Hash browns.”

Veronica giggles. “You’re so _American_ ,” she says before calling over the waiter to order their breakfast and a coffee refill for her. “And a latte for my _beau_ here, three sugars.”

She smiles, seemingly proud that she remembered his coffee order. Archie can’t help but chuckle, suddenly feeling comfortable again. “So, what are you reading?”

“Oh.” She grabs the paperback novel and shows him the cover. In big pink letters, against a blue background, is written _Lullaby_ , by Chuck Palahniuk. There’s a print of a dead crow with an arrow through its heart. “I did enjoy the movie yesterday,” she says in confessional tone, and Archie frowns.

Ever since he was a child, everyone around him seemed to like to read — when she wasn’t working, his mom would devour book after book while sitting on their porch. Archie always felt a little jealous of the stories she was reading — it was almost as if she wanted to constantly be somewhere else. Jughead more than often would decline to play so he could catch up with some book, and Betty was always telling him about things she read about, using a sweet, but patronizing, voice whenever he didn’t really get it.

Archie has never been much of a reader. All his hobbies involved _moving,_ except, maybe, music.

Veronica removes her reading glasses, a smile curling on her lips. “You have no idea why I just said that,” she half-asks, making Archie chortle. “Palahniuk wrote _Fight Club_ , the novel,” she explains. “I knew I’d seen his name somewhere before, so last night, when I got home, I remembered I had this book.”

Archie grins, feeling weirdly pleased that making her watch a movie got her reading something new. “What’s it about?”

Their food arrives at about the same time she starts talking about the plot and comparing it to other books she’s read before. Archie listens to her talk as he eats his breakfast, and completely forgets that they’re just doing this so they can show Josie and Melody that their relationship is _going great._ In fact, he only remembers their deal when a notification makes her phone light up and he sees it — the selfie he sent her last night, as her lockscreen.

“Wait, you weren’t joking?” Archie asks in the middle of a mouthful of toast. Veronica seems confused until he finishes chewing and swallows his food. “You really changed your lockscreen?!”

“I told you I would.” Veronica shrugs. “Would we even be dating, if I didn’t?”

Archie glances at the counter, at Josie and Melody, but it turns out that they aren’t there anymore. He’s a little surprised — he didn’t even realize they had left. No one else in the diner will care if they stop acting like a couple or if they start talking about their arrangements, then.

He shakes his head. She’s definitely right about the lockscreen thing, but _still_. “I didn’t mean to send you _this pict_ —”

“You didn’t mean to send me a love song either, but look at us,” she teases, pointing her fork at him. Archie’s cheeks get warm again. “Don’t fret over this, Archiekins. You look hot.” She wiggles her eyebrows.

“Well, if that’s the case,” he decides to play it cool, “you need to send me a picture, so I can change my lockscreen, too.” He takes his phone out of his pocket. His lockscreen has been the same picture of Vegas where he looks like he’s smiling, tongue poked out, for as long as he’s had this phone. 

“No problem. I’ll find one for you.” She turns towards him a little, her back against the diner window, and Archie watches as she scrolls down her camera roll. “Wait—” She glances at him over her phone, creasing her eyebrows. “Do I have to be half-naked in the picture too, or—”

Archie feels the laughter bubble up inside of him, even though he’s pretty sure he’s also _blushing_. Veronica shrugs her shoulders when she giggles, and his phone vibrates and _dings_ in his hand when he gets the photo she sent him. While he waits for it to open, he wonders — kind of _dreads_ , to be honest — if she’d be crazy enough, or maybe just as crazy as _him_ , to send him a half-naked picture. But it turns out to be a selfie, even though it’s a bit of a private one, not something she’d post along the careful selection on her Instagram feed. He thinks she’s not really wearing makeup in it, and she’s lying on her stomach, her bare feet propped up.

It’s impossible not to stare at it for a moment.

 

 

 

 

 

About two weeks later, his dad drives Archie to school a little earlier than usual. It’s a really beautiful day — the sky is blue and cloudless, even though the air is still chilly — and he sits down at a table in the courtyard, enjoying the warmth of the sun as he nods his head to the song he’s listening to.

After a while, someone blocks the sun, and Archie opens his eyes to see Veronica smiling down at him. She’s wearing a yellow top today, with black buttons on it, and it matches the day nicely. He smiles, removing one of his earbuds. “Hey.”

She hands him his coffee as usual and leans down for the quick _hello_ peck. Archie isn’t really keeping tabs on how much they've been kissing, but he’s gotten used to their _routine_ now. It’s three, every day: the _hello_ one, the _see you later_ one, and the _goodbye_ one. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, the number ups to four, because there’s the _post-practice_ kiss added to the list, and since that one happens right in front of Chuck Clayton, it normally lasts more than a second. On weekends, they haven't kissed again ever since that day at Pop’s.

“So,” Veronica sets her handbag on the table and sits down next to him, crossing her legs, “your dad apparently bumped into my mom yesterday,” she says, taking a sip of her coffee.

“Oh?” Archie twists the wire from his headphones around his phone, pausing the song. “Do we have to attend the wedding?”

Veronica gives him the pointed look that she always gives him whenever he reminds her that their parents used to be an item in high school. Archie laughs — he can’t really understand why it bothers her so much. He thinks it’s hilarious. “Actually, he casually told her that you and I are together.”

“Wait.” Archie was going to drink but stops the coffee cup halfway. “ _I_ never told him we’re together.”

“You didn’t?” She frowns.

Archie shakes his head. “We didn’t talk about involving our parents, so…”

Veronica heaves out a breath, seeming to believe him. Archie wonders why his dad would just _make up_ something like this. Well, okay, they _were_ “dating”, but Fred didn’t witness anything between him and Veronica that would give it away. They acted like friends when they were watching Fight Club in his living room, and they acted like friends while they were studying for the Spanish test that he had last Monday. “It’s no big deal,” she concludes. “I mean, the whole school has seen us, probably the whole town, since we went to Pop’s. It will just make our arrangement more believable.”

Archie ponders it as he drinks his coffee. He doesn’t think their arrangement is being questioned by anyone — they’re always walking hand-in-hand down the hallways, always together somehow. Kevin stopped him the other day to say that he always thought Chuck and Veronica were his favorite couple but that he was one hundred percent _Team Varchie_ now. Mr. Davies, the geography teacher, confiscated his phone for a whole day when he caught Archie texting her during class — she had sent him a new selfie because she wanted him to change his lockscreen.

He’s just not sure if their arrangement is _working_ , since, even though Chuck definitely stares at them every once in a while, he seems to be officially dating Josie now, and Betty…

Well. Betty hasn’t spoken to him ever since that day in Jason’s car.

Things between her and Jughead seemed to be alright, though. Archie hadn’t witnessed any more fighting, and the _picking-up/dropping-off_ schedule is back to normal. He thinks this is good — it was one of his main goals, anyway, Betty and Jughead being happy even though Archie wrote a song for her calling her _the one that got away_.

But he’d be lying if he said he didn’t miss talking to her. He sucks at bio, now, because Sheila doesn’t talk things through like Betty used to do, and the Firebird project has been forever paused. He knows it’s kind of his fault that they’re not hanging out anymore — if only she wouldn’t question him about the song.

“The thing is,” Veronica pulls him out of his thoughts, “my mom hasn’t stopped bugging me about it. She really wants to meet you,” she says with a slight eye-roll. Archie’s eyebrows travel towards his hairline. He’s always been a little intimidated by Hermione Lodge, even though he’s only ever seen her a few times — she looks like she could be a mafia boss, or something like that. “Dinner at the Pembrooke this Saturday?”

She looks a little apprehensive about his answer, but Archie can’t see why — it’s not like he has any other plans on Saturday night. Archie half-frowns, half-smiles. “I’ll be there for you, Ronnie,” he says, and she beams, putting her hands together in a single clap. Archie chuckles. “Do you think she’ll tells us stories about her and my dad getting hot and heav— _ouch_.”

Veronica punches him in the arm. “You’re disgusting.”

 

 

 

 

 

On Saturday, Archie finds himself staring at the mirror. He’s trying to decide on whether or not to wear a tie for dinner at the Pembrooke — Veronica is always so perfectly put together, and from what he’s seen of Hermione Lodge, Ronnie gets it from her mom. 

 _Well, tie it is,_ he decides after a minute, wondering why the hell he is bothering with impressing anyone. But it’s his first time meeting his girlfriend’s mom, since he never got the chance to meet either of Val’s parents, just her brother, and, even if things between him and Veronica are just for show, he doesn’t want Hermione thinking that he’s not good enough for her daughter.

He goes down to the living room to ask for his dad’s opinion. Fred smiles when he sees him, pleased. “Looking sharp, kiddo.”

“Thanks.” Archie scratches the back of his head. “Well, I’m not exactly sure when dinner will be over, but I’ll text you when I’m about to head back?”

“Okay. I’m staying in tonight, so you can take the truck. I also bought some flowers for you to give to Hermione,” Fred says, showing him a small bouquet of purple flowers wrapped in brown paper, resting on the coffee table. “It’s not very polite to show up empty-handed.”

“Oh, wow,” Archie grabs the bouquet off the table,  “I hadn’t thought about that.” He confesses it while looking at the flowers, and he’s not sure if it’s something he would’ve thought of if what he had with Veronica was real. Fred smiles, getting up from the couch and giving him two tender pats on his cheek.

“You’re doing great. My job is to guide you.” He winks. “Have fun. Do you know which fork to use with each dish?”

Archie widens his eyes. “Wh—”

Fred laughs a little. “I’m just messing with you.”

Archie googles _table etiquette_ when he parks the truck in front of the Pembrooke, just in case.

 

 

 

 

 

“Ah. Don’t you look dashing.” Veronica smiles when she sees him at her door. Archie inevitably feels his cheeks warm up. She looks really beautiful as well in her black dress with lace sleeves, but _really beautiful_ is just what’s normal for her. He almost leans in for the _hello_ kiss, before he remembers that they aren’t exactly in public. “Are those for me?” She gestures towards the bouquet in his hand.

Archie’s face heats up even more. “Uh. For your mom,” he murmurs. Should he have gotten flowers for her as well?

“ _Oh_.” Veronica seems disappointed for a split second but then she giggles. “Of course. Come on in, she’s setting the table.”

She grabs his hand, and he follows her into the apartment, looking around. It’s spacious and nicely decorated, looking a lot more like a hotel than like an actual home, but he can see little signs of them residing here — an open magazine on one of the couches, Veronica’s reading glasses forgotten on an end table, just one high heeled shoe under a chair.

“Archie’s here,” Veronica announces once they enter the dining room, where her mom is indeed setting the table. She’s as beautiful as Archie knew her to be, but she’s just a little bit taller than Veronica. She’s also wearing pearl earrings like her daughter, a detail that makes a smile tug at his lips. Hermione smiles back when she sees him. “Archie, this is Hermione Gomez, my mom,” Veronica says, reminding him that her mom changed back to her maiden name after the divorce. She also told him thus six hundred times this week. “And Mom, this is—”

“Archie Andrews. Fred’s son.” Hermione smiles, studying him with kind, brown eyes. “You’re as handsome as your father. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

Archie would crack a joke about that to annoy Veronica, if they were alone, but since it’s not the right time, he just puts his best, sweetest smile on. “Thanks, Ms. Gomez. It’s nice to meet you. These are for you.” He hands her the bouquet.

“And a gentleman as well.” She takes the flowers from his hand, her face lighting up. _There’s something magical about giving flowers to someone,_ Archie remembers his father saying, once upon a time, and it’s very much true. “Thank you, sweetheart. You can call me Hermione. I’m going to put these in a vase and get the food. Veronica, will you help me? Choose a seat, Archie.”

“Okay,” he says, but he looks a bit lost when Veronica lets go of his hand. She looks over her shoulder as she follows her mom into, what he supposes is, the kitchen and winks, pointing towards one of the chairs with her head.

 

 

 

 

 

The dinner at the Pembrooke is an easy affair, much easier than he anticipated. Veronica’s mom didn’t cook — she ordered take-out from an Italian restaurant that Archie didn’t know existed in Riverdale, and in the end there’s only one fork in the set of utensils at the table. He doesn’t have to worry. Hermione drinks red wine while she asks him thoughtful, polite questions that he doesn’t feel nervous about answering, even if most of them have to do with the future. She doesn’t make a face when he says that he might study music, one day, and he remembers his _own_ mom making a face when he told _her_ that.

“Archie is an incredible musician, Mom,” Veronica says, resting a hand on his forearm. “Do you remember when he performed at the Jubilee?”

Archie frowns a little, honestly impressed that Veronica remembers this. The year before last, when the town turned seventy-five, Val convinced Josie to let him sing one song after the Pussycats opening number — he went up on stage, wearing a button up shirt like he was already a _grown up_ , and sang a version of Phillip Phillip’s _Home_ that seemed to please the crowd. Val gave him a big kiss on the cheek, Betty squeezed his hand in approval when she passed him to take over the stage and make a speech, but he didn’t — he didn’t see Veronica, that day.

“Wait, you went to that?” He knits his eyebrows, unable to hide his surprise.

“Yes, we were there,” Hermione answers, watching them with a soft smile on her lips. “I remember that you were indeed quite good, Archie. Veronica is very lucky to have a boyfriend who will sing songs for her.”

Archie is glad for the dim, warm light in the dining room — it probably helps conceal how red his face might be. Veronica clutches his arm. “And songs _about her_ ,” she says, with a hint of tease in her voice, her elbow poking Archie’s side.

He wants to get back at her by saying something like _much like my dad probably sang for you, Ms. Gomez,_ but his ingrained, good-manners end up winning. He only grins.

 

 

 

 

 

After dessert — which is Belgian chocolate ice-cream, that tastes richer and more indulgent than any chocolate ice-cream Archie’s ever had — Hermione tells them that she’s tired (and possibly quite drunk after finishing the whole bottle of red wine alone, but that’s not something she tells them) and that Archie is welcome to stay as long as they leave the door open. She says that to Veronica with a pointed look, and Veronica’s poker face makes him wonder if she has ever lived by the house rules.

“Thanks for coming,” Veronica says as soon as Hermione disappears behind her bedroom door. Veronica heaves out a big breath, and Archie realizes that maybe she wasn’t all that relaxed like she had seemed throughout the dinner. “I don’t wanna take up more of your time, though — there’s still a couple of hours left of this Saturday night for you to do other things.” She smiles looking down, almost bashful.

“Bold of you to think I have anything else to do,” Archie purposefully jokes, not really understanding why she looks so forlorn all of a sudden. It works — she ends up laughing a little, shaking her head. “Do you wanna hang out a little more?”

She shrugs one of her shoulders and nods. “Alright.”

He follows her into her room. The apartment is _so big_ , and after Hermione goes to bed, it’s also very quiet. There are no sounds coming from the street, no Vegas running around and making a mess. Veronica’s room is also absurdly large for someone so small — the bed is huge, luxurious, and, for some reason, the first thing he notices, followed by the light lavender and pink on her walls, and a mannequin wearing a black dress.

She sits on her bed as he stands, hands in his pockets, looking around. Her room is really different from Betty’s, the only girl’s room he’s ever been to, if he doesn’t count one party at Heather Higgs house last summer, when he and Val ended up making out in Heather’s room. The pictures on her walls are framed and they’re really just tasteful photography, nothing too personal.

“Your room’s nice,” he tells her, still trying to find things here and there that will make him think of her. He takes a step towards her vanity, where there’s some makeup lying around as well as a bottle of _Chanel n.5_ perfume and a string of pearls.

“I could tell my mom liked you,” Veronica says. Archie touches the pearl necklace, rolling the cold beads between his fingers.

“What’s not to like?” He turns around, winking at her, and laughs when Veronica rolls her eyes. He’s _not_ overconfident like this, but every time he jokes about it, a curve appears on the corners of her lips, like she’s trying really hard not to laugh but fails every time. “I liked her too. Honestly, my mom didn’t take it anywhere close to as well as your mom when I said I wanted to maybe study music, in the future.”

It’s true. Not that Mary fought him or anything — he mentioned it twice, on Easter and Christmas, the two times he saw her in person last year, and, twice, she had the very same reaction: she smiled at him like he was just a stupid kid with a stupid dream, caressed his cheek and said something along the lines of, _“I think music is such a nice hobby, sweetie”_ before she left again for her _real_ job.

He doesn’t look at Veronica while he thinks about that — instead, he focuses on the pearls between his fingers. “Your mom lives in Chicago, right?” she asks after a moment of silence. Archie didn’t know that she knew — maybe they talked about it at some point, or maybe Betty told her.

“Yeah,” he finally lets the necklace go, “it’s been… Four years, now. Since she left.” He sighs. “Wow.”

“Did you want to go with her?” Veronica asks. Archie pulls out the vanity chair and turns to face her, sitting down. She looks like one of the French paintings they studied in class, sitting on that classic bed with her legs to the side.

Archie chews on his lip, thinking. He doesn’t think anyone has ever asked him this before — maybe because it was never a real option, even though his mom still invites him every time they talk. But as much as he, theoretically, would love to live in a big city like Chicago, he always knew that following his mom would defeat the purpose of her going in the first place.

“I— No, I chose to stay in Riverdale,” he says. “My mom was going after these new opportunities, and I— I think I just chose my dad.” He heaves out a breath. Veronica frowns a little. “My mom is great. She really is, but sometimes I feel like… Like she isn’t really… cut out for this, you know? Having a kid, taking care of a family. It’s just not her. And I respect that, it’s okay. It’s why I decided to stay.”

Veronica nods slowly, taking in what he just said. He feels shitty for saying that about his mom — he loves her, he misses her, and he knows that she loves him so much, but all of his important memories, from who took him to school for the first time to who carried him around the house, lulling him to sleep when he was just an impatient child, all of them featured Fred, and not Mary.

“I hated my parents so much for splitting up,” Veronica confesses after a beat. “I— God, I did _everything_ in my power to stop them from getting a divorce. Once, I invited a priest to family dinner, to remind them that marriage is forever.” She scoffs. “I really tried to manipulate every situation until one day my mom sat me down to tell me that it was out of my reach, and that I needed to start packing because we were moving to her hometown.” She bites her lip, looking up at him. “For someone who used to have everything she wanted, hearing that was pretty devastating.”

Archie clenches his jaw. He remembers — as much as he tried and tried to forget — being in that closet with her and asking her if she missed New York City. He remembers her downcast eyes, and how small her voice was when she nodded and said _it’s been less than a week, but yes._ He distantly knew she had moved because her parents got divorced — it was big news in the whole state of New York, he had just never connected the dots until he did — but he never found time or space to question how she felt about it.

“Didn’t you want to stay with your dad?” he finds himself asking the same thing she did, a moment ago.

She laughs low in her throat, but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes. “I actually tried to, but I soon found out I didn’t have this choice,” she says. “He never told me to stay. In fact, when I mentioned it, he told me that I shouldn’t leave my mom alone and that I could visit him any time I wanted to.”

“Ouch.”

“Yeah,” she quickly lifts her eyebrows, “in retrospect, I think I just wanted to… Stay at my old school, keep on partying with my old friends, but— thinking I was _daddy’s little girl_ and then hearing that he didn’t want me to stay really hurt.” She sighs.

Archie takes a deep breath, too. “I’m sorry.”

Veronica tilts her head, studying him curiously. “It’s not your fault, Archiekins,” she says with a small smile.

“Still.” He shrugs. He’s not really sure why he’s saying it, but it’s the truth; he’s sorry that her parents got divorced, sorry that her dad didn’t want her to stay with him, sorry that she’s still hurt, and sorry that he never listened to what she had to say before now, that he never even asked.

“Okay,” she says. “Then, I’m sorry too, about your mom. I meant what I said back there.” She pauses for a second. “You’re pretty good at this music stuff.”

The corners of Archie’s mouth curl up slightly. “Thanks, Ronnie.”

 

 

 

 

 

On Monday, he waits with Veronica outside until Smithers comes to pick her up, done with her activities for the day. He still has to go to lab, even though he feels like he’d sacrifice his firstborn in order not to.

There’s no one around them, so Veronica doesn’t kiss him goodbye, only gets into her black car after throwing him a grin and a _see you tomorrow, lover boy_ , which apparently was her new favorite fake-pet name — she toyed with _boyfriend_ and _pudding_ for the first two weeks, but _lover boy_ seemed to win the race.

Archie closes the door for her and gives her a small wave, watching the car drive away as he  sighs and prepares himself to trek across the whole building.

He’s walks into lab, expecting to find a seat next to Sheila Wu, when he stops in his tracks. Sitting at their usual table, the second last, next to the window, is Betty. She’s fiddling with the curl at the edge of her ponytail, looking a bit uneasy. Archie holds his breath for a moment.

He looks around. Everyone else is paired up — in fact, Josie is back to her usual lab partner — and there’s literally _nowhere else_ for Archie to run, because Mrs. Lilah just walks right past him, patting him on the back as she steers him into the classroom. “C’mon, kids, gloves on.”

Betty looks in his direction and sees him _still_ standing there like a lemon. She squares her shoulders, and her mouth curls into something that could be both a smile and a pout, before she gently pushes her stool a little to the left, maybe signaling that she’s giving him more space to sit next to her.

“Mr. Andrews, it’s Monday. Let’s get this over with,” Mrs. Lilah says, making the students giggle.

Archie swallows hard and tightens his grip on his backpack strap as he walks up to the table, his heart picking up. “Hey,” he murmurs, taking the stool next to her.

“Hi,” Betty says back, still sitting tall, the pink flush on her cheeks matching her light sweater. She’s barely looking at him, and he feels like he’s time travelling to two Septembers ago, those weeks where she couldn’t really look him in the eye. It truly sucks.

Mrs. Lilah starts writing what they’ll have to do on the blackboard, and Archie starts bouncing his leg, just _waiting_ for the moment she’ll bring up the song.

She doesn’t.

Betty gets one pair of gloves for her, one for him, and when their eyes catch each other, he probably can’t avoid the questioning in his gaze. She gives him a shrug with her right shoulder. “There’s a test coming up, and I feel like we’re better lab partners than me and Josie,” she explains, calmly. “She also prefers working with Sheila.”

Archie feels his ears heat up, a bunch of jumbled thoughts in his mind. He supposes that his biology grade could use Betty’s guidance once again, but this just feels _wrong_ , just sitting next to her and working together like he hasn’t shut her out for the past three weeks, like she didn’t try to reach out and he just said _not now_.

Still, it couldn’t be _now_ , because he still has no idea what he’d say to her if she did bring up the song. _I’m sorry, your song meant nothing. I’m happy with Veronica?_ Archie takes a deep breath. He obviously _could_ say that, since he _is_ happy in this fake-relationship-turned-into-real-friendship thing he’s got going on with Ronnie, but he doesn’t want to see Betty’s green eyes glistening again, full of hurt.

And he also couldn’t lie _that much_ and say that the song meant absolutely nothing, because it did. All of them meant something.

Betty squints her eyes at Mrs. Lilah’s notes on the chalkboard. He isn’t ready to talk to Betty about the song, but maybe she’s ready to talk to him without asking about it. This is a good sign. Maybe he’ll be able to hang out with Betty again without the past few weeks hanging over their heads. Isn’t this the whole point of his thing with Veronica?

“Oh,” he releases the air in his lungs very slowly.

Maybe it _is_ working.

 

 

 

 

 

During lab, Archie and Betty easily fall into their routine — she tells him what to do, and he listens and glances at her while she takes notes or bites on the edge of her pen. When the bell rings and Mrs. Lilah dismisses them, Betty just thanks him for the help, saying a very quiet goodbye. 

At home, he looks outside his window to find that her curtains are open. She’s in her room, too, taking textbooks out of her backpack so she can do her homework. He stares at her for a second, wondering what he’d do if she caught him watching her — if he’d wave or smile.

None of those things happen, and Archie ends up looking away.

The next morning, he finds Veronica at their usual table in the courtyard. She’s already drinking a cup of coffee, her reading glasses on as she flicks through some fashion magazine. Archie smiles briefly when he sees her — he likes when she wears lighter colors; it makes her golden skin look a bit darker.

“Morning,” he says, leaning in to kiss her. The courtyard is a _kissing zone_. She greets him back but turns her face a little, and his kiss ends up landing on her cheek. Archie frowns. He can’t remember kissing her cheek before. Like, ever. “Are you okay?”

“I’m reading the Bible,” she says, distractedly. Archie frowns even more, prompting her to look at him. “ _Vogue_ , Archiekins,” Ronnie explains, showing him the cover. He chuckles and looks down at the page she returns to, where a blonde model is wearing a colorful tie-dye dress with, no shit, about _sixty_ different necklaces. It makes no sense to him. “So…”

He creases his eyebrows again, still smiling. “So?”

“I’ve heard that you and Betty are lab partners again,” she says, very nonchalant, just flicking another page.

“Oh,” Archie feels his heartbeat speeding up a little, and he can’t understand why. “Yeah. Who told you this?”

“Betty.” Veronica looks at him over her glasses, her lips pressed together in a tight-lipped smile. Archie clears his throat. He had almost forgotten that she and Betty were still friends and that his song (thankfully) only ruined things that concerned him. He wonders what they talked about and kind of hates that he’s not a part of it, even though it is about him.

“Right.” He scratches the back of his head, clearing his throat. “Well, she thinks I’m a better lab partner, which is probably my highest academic accomplishment so far.” His voice ends up sounding more bitter than joking.

“And you’re okay with it?” Veronica asks, pointedly.

Archie wonders what she means. Is he okay with Betty only talking to him because she wants someone who’ll follow her instructions in biology, or is he okay with Betty getting closer again after everything that happened? He searches his mind for an answer to the second question, because the first is just stupid. He wets his lips, glancing away from Veronica’s face for a second. “Well… Yes. I mean, she’s my best friend. I’ve missed her. I miss hanging out with her.” He shrugs, looking back at her. “And if she’s ready to be around me, our plan must be working, right?” He says it with an optimistic grin.

Veronica stares at him for a beat. “Right. Yeah, sure.” She nods and smiles too, even though it’s _weird_. It's not at all the sweet, pretty smile he’s used to getting from her. But it all just happens so fast — she soon looks down, turns another page from her magazine, very much unfazed. Archie watches her, confused, trying to make something out of her blank expression, but he has nothing until she rolls her eyes. “I hate spring editorials. They’re so unoriginal.”

Archie looks down at the magazine, where there are two models dressed in identical floral suits paired up with floral shirts and lifts up his eyebrows. He can’t understand fashion, much like he can’t understand girls.

 

 

 

 

 

When lunch comes, later that day, he walks into the cafeteria only to find that Veronica is already there — they’ve eaten lunch together since the very first day of their arrangement, whether alone or with Cheryl and Heather, but today she has chosen to sit with the Vixens. Tina is telling a story, it seems, and all the girls are laughing — Veronica throws her head back to do so, cracking up. 

Archie feels something weird bothering his throat.

She doesn’t even see that he’s there, waiting for a sign for how to _act_ — couldn’t she have warned him they wouldn’t sit together? — but soon Archie realizes he’s being dumb. He takes his food tray and looks around. He’ll be damned if he sits with Reggie and the other Bulldogs, and if he sits alone, everyone will think something is wrong between him and Ronnie. So, he sighs and approaches his old, usual table. Yes, Betty is there — she sits upright when she sees him — but so are Kevin and Moose. They’ve been sitting together the _entire_ year, so there’s no reason for this _not_ to be normal.

“Oh, he remembers he has friends,” Kevin mentions, as soon as Archie sets his tray down. Moose elbows his boyfriend, but Kevin just shrugs. “I told you their honeymoon phase would soon pass.”

Archie barely opens his mouth to answer this — some half-assed excuse, like, _Tina is telling some gossip_ , which would probably just make Kevin run to the Vixens table — when Betty slides a little bit to the left, to give him more space on the bench, as Archie sits down.

Moose frowns. “Weren’t you— uh, what’s the term you used?”

“ _Shipping_ ,” Kevin says, half-annoyed, half-affectionate.

“Yes, _shipping_ them, just yesterday?”

“Of course. But, I’m sorry, _Team Varchie_ loses to _Team Kerchie_ at any day.” Kevin reaches out to squeeze Archie’s hand. Moose looks at their hands linked together, and then shrugs, as if he’s considered the possibility and isn’t mad about it.

Archie ends up glancing at Betty. “Do you have any idea what they’re talking about?” he asks her, feeling his lips curling up.

Betty avoids his eyes, but she does giggle.

 

 

 

 

 

Archie is pleased that he spent some time with his friends, including Betty, but he can’t seem to get over that weird feeling in his throat, like an itch that won’t go away, no matter how much he swallows. Veronica barely glances at him as she leaves the cafeteria with the Vixens, and Archie spends his afternoon classes in a strange mood.

But when you’re in a relationship, fake or not, you have to communicate.

That’s the biggest lesson he learned with Val — that if something is bothering you, you have to tell the other person or ask what’s going on. The few times he and Val fought over something had always been due to poor communication. Plus, he and Veronica have a _contract_ , so it’s probably even _more okay_ to ask what’s going on.

With that in mind, right before football practice, he finds her at the gym, already stretching for her cheerleading practice. She has both legs extended in front of her, and her body is bent forward as she tries to reach her toes.

“Ronnie?”

She seems to take a deep breath before slowly sitting up, bringing her feet together and spreading her knees apart, in a butterfly stretch. “Hey,” she says, not really looking at him. “What’s up?” Archie feels his eyes automatically going down her body, drinking in her position — her shorts are _really_ short — but then he clears his throat, commanding himself to _focus_.

His ears are definitely red, but now he can’t back down. “Why did you shun me at lunch?”

“What?” She makes a face. Archie isn’t sure if it’s because she’s pushing her knees down to touch the floor or because of what he said. “No. I just got there before you did, and Tina was telling us some gossip.”

Archie frowns. That’s the exact, half-assed excuse he thought of, earlier on. He sighs, having random flashbacks of how frustrating it was when Val wouldn’t tell him what was really going on. “Are you sure? I feel like you’ve been avoiding me all day.”

“Nonsense.” Veronica bends over again, planting her palms on the floor as she stretches. “By now, everyone knows we’re _together_ , so there’s no need to show off as much.” Her voice is muffled because her face is almost touching the floor. She sure is flexible. “We can use our time to hang out with the people we missed hanging out with.”

She spends a few more seconds bent over, and Archie uses them to think about it — maybe she’s right. He’s really only spent time with Ronnie, lately. Well, maybe even _Kevin_ is right about their _honeymoon_ phase being over. She sure seems over it when she sits up and looks back at him, bringing her knees to her chest, relaxing.

“Plus,” Veronica goes on, looking straight at him, now, “it’s not like you were sitting alone, right?”

“Excuse me.” Cheryl Blossom seems to appear out of thin air, her flaming red hair up in a messy bun. “I smell testosterone bothering my squad, and I don’t like it,” she says, dismissing him with a hand. “Why don’t you go outside with the rest of the troglodytes?”

Archie’s eyebrows travel towards his hairline. Even though he probably doesn’t have it in him, he likes to think he _could_ say something back to Cheryl. _If_ she didn’t have the power to _end_ his life with just _one_ click of her telephone.

“I was just doing that.” He sighs. Veronica is still looking up at him, Cheryl is tapping her feet, and Archie thinks this is a _kiss-in-public_ situation. So, he just leans down and plants a quick kiss on Veronica’s mouth. “See you later, Ronnie.”

 

 

 

 

 

He doesn’t see her later, because she leaves before their usual _show-off_ in front of Chuck. The next morning, Archie stops by at Pop’s to buy them coffees ( _and_ a chocolate donut for her, for good measure) but when he gets to school, Ronnie tells him she’s already had breakfast and kisses his cheek before leaving with her arms linked with Heather’s, leaving him behind.

In that moment, as he stands there with two coffees and a donut like an idiot, Archie decides that he doesn’t _need_ to go any extra miles to impress her or to apologize for whatever got her in this mood — she’s _not_ his real girlfriend, and he’s not going to waste his time and energy to get back into her good graces. He’d already asked, and she said everything was fine. So, he will just believe it and keep on living his life.

(He still throws her coffee in the trash and gives the donut to Kevin.)

Archie has lunch with Betty and the boys again, _twice_ , and they fall into easy conversation — even Betty seems more relaxed, offering Archie her chips or glancing at him whenever Moose cracks a dumb joke that Kevin rolls his eyes at.

But Archie can’t stop glancing at the Vixens table, clenching his jaw, each time he catches Kevin watching and looking like he wants to ask him something. It prompts Archie to accost Veronica at her locker on Friday, when the school day has ended and she’s putting her books away. “Ronnie, are we good?” he asks her. Veronica seems a bit caught off guard, her breath hitching for a second before she frowns. “People are starting to think we’re in a fight or something.”

“Why would they think that?” Her voice is slightly higher-pitched and then she smiles, all casual. “We’re fine. I told you.”

There’s a thought in Archie’s mind — that Veronica is, _somehow_ , bothered by him getting closer to Betty again — but it's such a ridiculous and entitled assumption that Archie has shrugged it off for the past days.

“Okay,” he says, shoving his hands into his letterman jacket pockets. Veronica flashes him a smile, a pretty one, and it makes him braver. “Are we watching Pretty Woman tomorrow? Maybe we can take a picture so you can hang it in there.” He nods at her locker door, remembering the picture with Chuck she ripped off in front of him, a few weeks ago. It still hasn’t been replaced with one of them.

“I can’t come over for the movie, tomorrow,” she tells him, still very nonchalant. Archie frowns, wondering if she has other plans and didn’t tell him about them. “But we could have lunch at Pop’s on Sunday?” she asks, touching his chin quickly before walking away.

He has no time to agree or disagree.

 

 

 

 

 

“I’ll be back around nine,” Fred tells Archie on Saturday morning. “And don’t worry, even though we’re headed to Red Sox territory, I’ll still root for the Mets,” he says, placing a blue and orange cap on his head. 

He and his friend, Marcus, are driving to Boston to watch a baseball match. They invited Archie a couple of weeks ago, when Marcus was buying the tickets, but back then Archie still thought he’d have plans with Veronica.

“Send pictures,” Archie says, smiling. Now that Veronica cancelled the movie, he feels a bit like a fool for turning down the invitation because of her, but he is really glad to see his dad enjoying life.

After Fred drives away with a wave and some recommendations, Archie retreats to his room and spends the rest of his morning with his punching bag. He’s panting and sweating when he stops to drink some water and catches a glimpse of Betty’s room — Jughead, who showed up to pick her up some minutes ago, is sitting on her bed while Betty seems to be putting things in a small duffle bag, as if she intends to spend the night out. Archie smiles softly, happy that things seemed to be totally fixed between them, but his smile soon fades.

He feels very much alone, suddenly.

In the afternoon, he decides to do something he hasn’t done in a while: strum his guitar. He sits down in the living room, with Vegas as his ever-supportive audience, and decides not to add any lyrics to the bundle of chords he’s conjuring.

He's not even halfway through the song when he realizes that he’s not writing anything new, but actually covering a song that has been in the back of his mind the whole week. Archie laughs in a self-deprecating way when he starts singing,

 _you’re hot, then you’re cold_  
_you’re yes, then you’re no_  
_you’re in, then you’re out  
_ _you’re up, then you’re down_

Vegas seems to notice that he has reached rock bottom, because he gets up from his sitting position and starts sniffing his hand. “Yes, buddy,” Archie says, still laughing, scratching behind Vegas’s ears, “we need a new hobby.”

 

 

 

 

 

The rest of his hours are dedicated to Youtube and watching _repair your own car_ tutorials until he’s _almost_ sure he can pull a Betty Cooper and do something with his Firebird. He changes into a worn-out white t-shirt and heads to the garage.

The sun is setting outside. Besides the Firebird, his dad keeps loads of other vintage stuff in the garage — including an old-school record player and a collection of vinyl records that Archie has been in love with ever since he was a child. He looks for one of his favorite records, Bruce Springsteen’s second album, that was released around the same time his grandpa bought the Firebird.

He plays the album, and it really does inspire him to work on the car, albeit not all that successfully. To be honest, Archie spends more time air guitar playing than dealing with the engine, his hands and shirt all greasy, but at least he has some fun.

Archie is bending over to check on this wire the Youtube tutorial says is important, when a girl’s voice cuts through the music.

“Oh, wow. I can’t believe you were hiding those sexy wheels from me.”

Archie doesn’t need to turn around to know it’s Veronica, but he does it anyway. He wants to act mad or annoyed, but she’s leaning on the garage door’s frame, and _holy shit_ , she looks _so fucking good_. Archie was _not_ prepared for it.

Her hair is all purposefully messy, and she’s wearing black from head to toe, sharp heels and a high-waist skirt with a jacket and a lace crop top underneath that shows much more of her skin than he’s ever seen. She has more makeup around her eyes than usual. The blood goes rushing to his face, and he can’t really help it.

“I’m fixing it—” He clears his throat when he notices his voice fails. “I’m trying to fix it. It doesn’t work, which is why I’m trying to fix it,” he says. “It was my grandpa’s.” Veronica nods, her lips curling up, probably aware that he’s sort of speechless. It ends up bringing him back to the ground. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m here to take you to a party,” Veronica says, opening her bag and taking a silver flask out of it. She throws it at him, and Archie is glad for his quick reflexes. The initials _HL_ are engraved on the metal surface. “Wanna go?”

Archie ponders it for a second. He’s still mad. She has no business acting weird and cold all week, cancelling their plans, only to show up looking like a fucking daydream and asking him if he’s willing to go to a party with her. He sighs, unscrewing the flask and giving it a sip.

Strong, spicy rum burns in his throat. In the background, Springsteen is singing that _you got a hold on me right from the start, a grip so tight I couldn’t tear apart_.

“I’ll take a shower.”

 

 

 

 

_tbc_

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey kiddos! i'm back at it. i continue to be so glad about this fic's response and i swear, it's just a FUN fic to write and i'm enjoying the ride A LOT. i hope you are too. thank you so much for the support!
> 
> in this chapter we have our idiots-to-lovers getting to know each other better and finally becoming friends until betty comes back to the picture and...? what's up, ronnie? ;) hahaha i really loved writing this chapter and i swear that every chapter i write, i love the fic more and more. and there's A PARTY coming.
> 
> my special thanks, as usual, go to the beta of the beats, nic; AK, who's been getting these chapters in advance and giving me perfect feedback; and milly, who helps me with all the aesthetic lol. love you girls so much. but i thank every single one of you for the support.
> 
> without further do, songs for this chapter:
> 
>   * Rollercoaster - Bleachers (beginning of the chapter)
>   * Come on Over - Coasts (just the general vibe, soundtrack for Mallmart maybe?)
>   * Hot'n'Cold - Katy Perry (Archie plays to Vegas, lol)
>   * Fire - Bruce Springsteen (when Ronnie shows up at the garage)
> 



	4. Chapter 4

_i like me better_  
_when i'm with you_

 

::  
::  
::

 

“Whose house is this, again?” Archie asks, looking around, as they walk into a house he’s never been to before. It’s probably one of the biggest in Riverdale, losing to Thornhill in size, but winning in every other aspect — there’s a big aquarium in the middle of the living room, radiating blue light, and there’s some lounge music playing not too loud. Archie can see some familiar faces here and there, mostly seniors, making conversation and drinking from red solo cups.

“Brad Jacobs,” Veronica says, pulling him by the hand through the living room as she waves to some girls that recognize them. Archie searches his mind — he knows that Jacobs is a senior and that he’s on Riverdale High’s wrestling team, but he can’t remember ever talking to him before. “Nice, isn’t it?” She flashes him a look over her shoulder, and he’s knocked out _again_ by how amazing she looks tonight.

The hand linked with hers is warm. Archie thinks it’s probably sweating.

“V!” They turn around to see Cheryl coming up to them, and Veronica drops his hand so she can greet her friend with a quick hug. Archie wipes his palms on his jeans for when she grabs it again. “You came! And I see you brought vanilla ice-cream,” she adds, looking at Archie with an overly sweet smile.

“Cher,” Veronica giggles, “be nice.”

“I _am_ nice.” Cheryl rolls her eyes. “Hi, Archie.”

“Hi, Cheryl,” Archie says, patiently. He always forgets that Cheryl is a senior too since she’s always hanging out with Veronica.

“Is Heather still on house arrest?” Veronica asks, touching one curl of Cheryl’s red hair, and Archie ends up shoving his hands into his jeans pockets.

“ _Ugh_ , yes. You won’t believe what her mom said…” Cheryl grabs the crook of Veronica’s arm and starts steering Veronica away from him as she tells her some tale about Heather. Archie frowns, not sure if he should follow them, but he takes the clue when he doesn’t even take one step further and Cheryl already turns around, her eyebrow arching. “We’ll be right back. Make yourself at home.”

Veronica gives him a small, apologetic shrug, and the two of them are gone before Archie can even remind Cheryl that this isn’t her house.

 

 

 

 

 

They’re not right back, and after standing in the same place for what feels like an eternity, even though it was probably only five minutes, Archie decides to walk around and see if there’s anyone else he knows or if he can, at least, find a bar.

There _are_ some people he knows: senior guys he’s seen playing in various sports, who nod at him in recognition. Some dudes from Baxter High. Sophomore girls who are sitting together in a corner, shy smiles and drinks in hand. A whole bunch of the Vixens with shiny hair and nice outfits.     

Archie spots some of the guys from varsity football gathered around a beer pong table. Chuck is playing against Brad Jacobs, and Jason Blossom is loud as he cheers for Chuck. He has his arm around Polly’s waist, and she looks different than she usually does at school, her hair wavy and free of headbands, her mouth painted bright pink.

Josie is there too, sipping on a cup as she watches her new boyfriend tell Brad that _he never misses_ , and Archie sighs. He does know a lot of the party guests — and none of them would be bothered by his presence if he approached them — but he doesn’t feel like starting a conversation with anyone.

The bar is easy to find, too. Archie and Veronica shared her flask of rum while in the backseat of the car, as Smithers drove them to the party. They didn’t talk too much, only enough for her to explain that the flask was something she took from her dad the last time she spent the weekend at his place in Manhattan. The rum they were drinking was apparently a recipe that had been in the Lodge family for generations. Her dad never noticed the flask was gone — at least, it’s what she thought.

In Brad Jacobs’s amateur bar, there are beer kegs and several different liquor bottles that could be mixed with soda or juice. There’s no expensive rum to numb his gums, so he decides to mix Coke with two splashes of Jack Daniels.

“Look who the cat dragged in.” Archie is conjuring his drink when Reggie appears at his side, wearing his staple leather jacket and his hair slicked back, rummaging through the liquor bottles. Archie clenches his jaw. “You’re here with Veronica?”

“Yes,” he says, a fake smile on his lips. “And Chuck is here with Josie, and you’re here with _no one_. Can’t say that I’m surprised.” Reggie laughs, pouring some vodka into his cup. “What’s so funny?”

“You, so fucking _whipped_ ,” Reggie adds some Sprite to his mix. Archie makes an effort to take in a deep breath. He _is_ here with Veronica, as a part of their deal that they would go together to every party they got invited to, and he won’t spoil her night, which is why he doesn’t punch Reggie in the face. “I spent the past few months trying to get you to come to _any_ party, so you’d stop sulking. And you always bailed, always said you were done. Veronica asks _once,_ and here you are.”

“Veronica is my girlfriend, Reggie.” Archie swirls the drink in his cup. It’s wild to say that out loud to someone, to remove the _fake_ that always preludes the word _girlfriend_ inside his mind. “And I would do anything for her. But you’re not even _my friend_ , so I don’t need to do anything for you. It’s liberating.”

Reggie nods, his lips turned down. “I’m glad you found someone, dude. I’m just sorry that you’re nothing but her rebound therapy.”

Archie clenches his jaw so hard; he feels his head hurt. He curls one of his hands into a fist, and he _could_ break Reggie’s face. For the life of him, _he could_. He tilts his chin up, standing face to face with Reggie, the anger bubbling up inside him. “Bro, I’m warning you. You don’t wanna start with me right now.”

Reggie lifts up both hands and shakes his head, but he’s smart enough to back off. Archie waits until Reggie has turned around to heave out a breath and downs the Jack-and-Cola mixture in his cup.

 

 

 

 

 

Thankfully, Reggie doesn’t try to talk to him again. Archie pours himself another drink, and, even though he commands himself to have some fun, making small talk with whoever acknowledges he’s there, he ends up sitting on a couch that faces the aquarium.

He watches the fish for a while as he nurses his fourth — or fifth — drink of the night. The Coke is almost gone, so it’s mainly just _extra sweet_ whiskey, at this point. He has no idea how long they’ve been at the party, definitely _hours_. It’s hard to say due to the soft electro beats in the background sounding like one never-ending song.

One thing he knows for sure, though: Veronica hasn’t talked to him ever since Cheryl whisked her away.

Archie has seen them around, here and there, together at first, Cheryl’s arm joined with Veronica’s the whole time, almost as if she wanted to show him that Veronica was _hers_ for the night.

However, when he spotted them later on, they had separated, Cheryl making some attempts at the beer pong table and Veronica talking to literally anyone but him, apparently having the time of her life. In this _exact_ moment, he can see her in his peripheral vision. She took off her jacket at some point, and now she’s only in her lacey, revealing top as she talks to her ex-boyfriend in the middle of the living room.

Archie keeps turning around to watch them interact. The alcohol has put him on edge instead of relaxing him, and as Veronica bats her eyelashes at Chuck Clayton, he can’t seem to shake Reggie’s words from the back of his mind.

Okay. _Technically_ , Archie _is_ her rebound therapy, but they’re also _friends_. It’s not like Veronica is _just_ using him — they have a _contract_ about it, a deal in which both parties benefit. The problem isn’t even what Reggie said — the problem is how _easy_ it is for her to ignore him, to stay away from him. She did it for all of this week, and she’s doing it now. The problem is how _easy_ it was for her to get what she wanted from him. She truly just showed up at his door.

It bothers Archie, annoys him, and he doesn’t really know why.

He admits that he doesn’t like her talking to Chuck.

She shouldn’t be out there flirting with her ex-boyfriend, an ex-boyfriend whose _actual girlfriend_ was around just a few minutes ago, an ex-boyfriend that didn’t think twice before dropping Veronica and finding someone else to fill her shoes. It’s not fair that she’s touching Chuck’s forearm and shooting him coy smiles. It's not fair that Chuck’s aware of aspects of her that Archie never even dreamed existed. Archie, who knows Veronica owns seventeen different skirts, but never knew she could wear lace or drink rum from a metal flask.

It’s not that he’s _jealous_ — there’s no reason to be — but even if Veronica is his _fake-_ girlfriend, she’s still his _girlfriend_ in everyone else's eyes. Archie wouldn’t like it if it was real — he never really liked to see them interacting, anyway — and he doesn’t like it now.

Archie stares back at the fish, finishing the whiskey in his cup. He thinks about getting up and interrupting Chuck and Veronica, or _maybe_ getting another drink, but both of which would be dumb decisions. He sighs and leans back on the couch, when the Fates decide to intervene and Veronica is the one who comes to sit next to him.

“There you are,” she says as if he hasn’t been _there_ on that stupid couch the entire evening. Archie doesn’t move. “My heels are killing me. Are you having fun?”

He turns his head a little to look at her and tell her with his expression that he’s not having fun _at all_ , but immediately regrets it because he realizes that she’s even more beautiful now than he remembered from the beginning of the party — the dark makeup around her eyes seems softer at the edges, blurred; her lipstick has faded a little, and her shoulders are exposed. There’s just so much _skin_.

Veronica giggles and reaches out to push his hair off his forehead. “You look sleepy,” she says, but her gentle touch, as brief as it is, wakes him up, makes him half-frown. She mirrors his expression for a second and then looks away. “I should go and find Cheryl,” Veronica says suddenly, already getting up.

“Wait, Ronnie.” He holds her wrist and pulls her back before she walks away. It isn’t _really_ his intention, to pull her _down_ , but somehow, she loses her balance and falls right onto his lap. They’re both startled for a second before she starts laughing. Archie smiles a little. “Shit, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” she says, still giggling. Archie thinks Veronica is going to get up, but she only moves to steel herself on his shoulder as she pulls her legs onto the couch, adjusting herself on his thighs. He instinctively holds her by the waist with one arm to help her balance herself, his other hand resting on her ankles.

Her bare shoulder is so close to his face. She weighs close to nothing, and she smells _so_ nice. “Why aren’t you hanging out with me?” he blurts out, feeling a little dizzy.

Veronica lifts one eyebrow. “I’m literally on your lap,” she jokes. Archie looks up at her. Her face is also very close, and her lips are curling into a small, witty smile.

He ignores her. “Why did you bring me here if you’re not going to spend time with me?” He can’t stop talking. He’s aware that he sounds needy, but he blames the alcohol, or maybe the soft feel of her skin under his palm, or both.

“You’re tipsy.” She shakes her head, but her eyes are soft when she places a hand on his cheek. The knot of tension in his stomach eases. Maybe he _is_ tipsy, but who cares? He’ll just stare at her until she gives him a proper answer. “Because I needed you to be my arm candy, Archiekins.”

That’s something about the way Veronica says that, her voice in a lower pitch and her face so close to his, that gets him completely lightheaded. He feels his heart beating in his throat, feels his eyes going down from her eyes to her mouth and _down_ , to her neck and cleavage and _all that skin_. “You know, an arm candy without an arm…” There’s a physical urge that he can’t fight against, and the hand that was on her ankle moves to her shoulder, over the thin strap of her top. “Is just a candy.” He looks up at her face again, feeling suddenly sheepish.

“Stop flirting with me,” she half-jokes, half-warns. And maybe it’s only in his head, but her breath seems slightly altered. Archie’s hand slides down her arm.

“Stop flirting with Chuck.” He shrugs.

Veronica parts her mouth. _“What?_ I wasn’t—” she starts, defensive, but when Archie’s eyebrows fly towards his hairline, she rolls her eyes slightly. “Okay. You’re right. He’s the one who should be getting jealous.” She turns her head, looking at where she’d been talking to Chuck, earlier. Archie looks over, too. He notices that Chuck is still there without Josie, but has no time to notice anything else, because suddenly Veronica’s hand is back on his cheek, and she’s turning his face back to her and kissing him.

Archie’s surprise lasts less than a second — the way she’s pressing her mouth against his is _not_ the same way he’s gotten used to. His hand is still on her arm, and he ends up pressing his fingers into her flesh, sighing as he feels her hand go from his face to his hair, tugging at it.

Fake, or not, Archie isn’t thinking. There are goosebumps all over his skin when he feels Veronica’s fingernails on his scalp, and he pulls her closer by the waist, following her lead when she opens her mouth against his, a low sound coming out from his throat when her warm tongue touches his.

Archie lets go of her arm, cupping her face, deepening the kiss. His mind is completely blank to anything but the feel of her. Veronica presses him against the couch, her hands in his hair and her chest heavy against his. _This._ This kiss. The kiss he tasted in a closet _so fucking long ago_ , the kiss that got him through feverish nights and that awakened something inside him.

He breathes in deeply, the hand on her waist pressing into the bare skin of her lower back, taking in her scent from up close. Inside his foggy brain there’s an image of the expensive perfume bottle on her vanity, of her sitting on her bed wearing a black dress, of her pushing him against the shelves of the closet a week after they met.

“ _Ew_ ,” Cheryl’s high-pitched voice cuts through to them, and Veronica pulls back, looking over his shoulder. “Get a room, xenomorphs!”

Veronica probably looks at her friend, because she chuckles, but Archie can’t see anything but her mouth, her neck, her collarbone, and even a little lower. She’s still sitting on his lap and he wishes she wasn’t. But at the same time, he hopes she never gets up — his blood is running fast, all over his body. He’s not sure if the kiss has sobered him up or gotten him even more drunk, but he’s betting on the latter.

“Okay, great,” Veronica murmurs, turning her head around again, to where she was standing with Chuck before. “This little show _definitely_ got him bothered.”

Archie doesn’t look over, but he vaguely remembers Chuck’s face. He tilts his head up, putting his mouth under her chin, his lips skimming down until they find her neck and the warm taste of her perfume. “Let’s do it again, then,” he says, because deep inside his drunk mind, he knows that he needs an excuse.

He might imagine it, but she tilts her head up, allowing him more access to her neck. Archie runs his lips down, feels her opening her mouth right next to his ear, and _dares_ touching her skin with his tongue before she’s pushing his shoulders. “Okay, stop,” she says, clearing her throat. “Rule number one.”

“Wh—” he starts, barely remembering what that means, but she’s off his lap after that, getting up. Archie almost thanks the huff of cold air that suddenly reaches him. His skin feels like it's on fire. “Okay,” he breathes out, slowly coming to his senses although he’s dizzier than ever.

“Okay,” she says, rubbing a hand on the back of her neck. Archie doesn’t dare to _really_ look at her, helplessly sitting on the couch. “I’ll— don’t move,” she tells him before leaving.

Archie doesn’t move. He sinks his head into the couch again and barely has time to _process_ what just happened when Veronica is back. She sits by his side and basically _shoves_ a bottle of water into his hand. “Drink up before we leave,” she says. Archie sits up and glances at her. Her lipstick is gone, and it unsettles him more than he wants to admit to himself.

He swallows the water but almost wishes it was more alcohol.

 

 

 

 

 

Veronica doesn’t call Smithers to pick them up — she decides that walking back will be a good idea, and Archie doesn’t have it in him to disagree. They manage to tread two blocks in awkward silence before she stops. “My feet really hurt,” she whines.

Archie’s first instinct is to offer to _carry her_ , but he stops himself from saying it. The second idea isn’t much brighter, but somehow, she accepts it. That’s how he ends up carrying _her shoes_ for her while walking with socked feet against the cold pavement as she tries to balance herself in his sneakers.

They are too big for her, and the pace they’re walking is really slow, but at least it gets them laughing. Archie thinks he might be getting a little more sober, because he’s actually starting to feel _embarrassed_ about his lack of self-control back at the party.

“Ronnie?” he calls, his hands in his pockets. When she looks over at him, he looks down at the street. “I think I got a little carried away, back then. I’m sor—”

“Oh, please, stop apologizing. I started it,” Veronica interrupts him, and she bumps him with her shoulder. “If you _saw_ Chuck’s face— it was so worth it,” she says. Archie feels the alcohol _and_ the water stir a bit inside his stomach. “Besides, it’s not the first nor the last time this will happen, so we just need to remember the rules and we’ll be fine.”

Archie nods. He chuckles then, when a _stupid_ thing comes to his mind.

 _“I got new rules, I count ‘em…”_ he sings quietly, bouncing his head to the rhythm of the song.

 “You’re not serious.” Veronica glares at him.

Archie shrugs and laughs softly as he keeps shaking his head and humming the song inside his mind. Veronica echoes it, her own laughter louder and brighter than his, throwing her head back. Right then, Archie thinks that he does _not_ want to spend an entire week missing her, again.

 

 

 

 

 

Sunday goes by really fast — he sleeps for the majority of it, fighting his hangover, and then spends time with his dad while Fred tells him tales about the game and how the Mets crushed the Red Sox, a smile lingering on his face. Marcus apparently owed him dinner, now, at some fancy place. Archie tells him about the Italian restaurant Ronnie’s mom ordered food from, the other day.

He has no trouble getting ready for school on Monday. He’s even excited to go, for some reason — maybe it’s because the sun is shining, and the sky is a very light shade of blue. Fred offers him a ride, but Archie decides to walk to school — he’s in the mood to seize the day, to listen to some music.

Archie strolls by Pop’s to get him and Ronnie some coffee, as agreed upon via text, yesterday. It’s a bit of a Sunday evening tradition for them, to decide who’s bringing caffeine to start off the week. When he gets to school, she’s at their usual table in the courtyard, reading. She _definitely_ looks different from Saturday, wearing a kind of _good girl’s_ grey dress with a white collar, two small braids framing her face in a headband, her reading glasses on and a book in her hand.

She’s always reading. Books, magazines, newspapers, feeds on her phone. Veronica likes to read as much as he likes music — he knows because he witnesses the stillness around her while she reads, her face really lost in the words, a peace that he experiences while trying to figure out chords with his eyes closed. He almost doesn’t want to disturb her.

“Hey,” he says with a smile, waving the coffee cup in front of her. Veronica looks up at him, lips perfectly painted red stretching in a small smile. “Good morning,” he says, kissing her _hello_. He doesn’t even remember leaning down, but he’s there, pressing his lips with her like they didn’t fake-kiss _for real_ during the weekend.

She keeps smiling after giving him a peck, taking the coffee from his hand. “Thank you, Archiekins,” she says, coming back to her book. Archie sits next to her, quickly wetting his lips before taking a sip of his coffee. He watches her profile for a moment. “Sorry, I’m just finishing this chapter. It’s really good.”

“No problem.” Archie rests his arm at the table behind her. His forearm brushes against her hair.

It doesn’t take long for her to carefully place the bookmark on a page she’s turned and take off her reading glasses, setting both things down. “Okay,” she drinks some of her coffee, “I’m all yours now.”

He forgets for a second what he was going to ask her. Not only because of what she just said, but because now that the glasses are gone, Archie notices that her lashes are really thick and long, today. It makes him overly aware of his skin.

“ _Aw,_ you two made up!” Kevin Keller shows up, suddenly, stealing Archie’s coffee from his hand. Veronica rolls her eyes a little, in good humor, and Archie swallows hard to get rid of whatever was forming inside his throat. Kevin makes a face when he drinks from Archie’s cup. “Oh, my God, what do you put in here?”

“Seven pounds of sugar.” Veronica sighs in an exaggerated way, offering her own coffee to Kevin once he gives Archie’s back. “Didn’t see you at Brad’s on Saturday, Kev.”

Kevin seems much more pleased with Veronica’s coffee. He smiles a bit. “My mom’s in town, so you know how that is…”

They smile too, and while Kevin explains how his weekend with his mom was, Archie ends up shifting a little in his seat and moving the arm that was behind Veronica. Kevin is _right_ in front of them, so he feels like it’s a good moment to hold her _better_. He wraps his arm around her waist, resting his hand on her hip. He flinches a little, wondering if it’s _too much_ , but then she snuggles a bit closer to him and places one hand on his knee.

“…And anyway, did you book anything for Cape Cod yet? Reggie booked this Airbnb with all the Bulldogs _and_ some of their girlfriends, and that sounds _tragic_. So I decided to do some research of my own. I imagine Archie is not going to let you into this trap, right, V?”

Archie opens his mouth, _completely_ unaware of what to say regarding this matter, when Veronica squeezes his knee. “ _Please_ , Kev. Archie and I will stay at the Chatham Bars Inn,” she says, almost dreamily. Kevin’s eyes widen. “We have a room with an ocean view, right, babe?” Veronica asks, giving him a witty smile as she snuggles even closer to him.

Archie doesn’t know what to do with himself for a moment, aware that his ears are red. He knows that the Cape Cod trip is in the _contract_ , but he never thought she’d _actually_ book a room. A room away from everyone else. A room with a view of the ocean. “Right.”

Kevin heaves out a heavy, long-suffering sigh. “I wish I had a girlfriend who was richer than me, but I’m gay and as middle class as my boyfriend.” He shakes his head, overly dramatic. “The sun doesn’t shine for everybody.”

 

 

 

 

 

When Kevin leaves and Veronica removes her hand from his leg, Archie asks her if she actually booked the room, since she didn’t mention anything about it. Veronica shrugs, nonchalant, and explains that she took everything they arranged to heart. She pats his hair fondly before leaving him in the courtyard with a _see you later, lover boy_ , and Archie watches her walk away with an all too familiar warmth growing on his cheeks. He’s still not sure that they’ll be together by the time the trip happens, but he feels sort of pleased that she thinks they will.

The week passes with ease, though quite busy with school and practice. Betty is still his lab partner and started talking to him about some random things here and there, like Netflix shows and her mom’s latest breakdown. Archie is glad that she isn’t asking him questions he doesn’t want to answer, and now that Veronica’s mood isn’t shifty like the past week, he feels like everything is falling into place again.

It’s been getting easier and easier to _do this_ — to be her boyfriend — even if it’s just pretend. For a minute there, right after the party, right after kissing her _for real_ , he thought it would be harder to come back to school and just _keep pretending_ , but for some reason, it isn’t.

They don’t have a lot of alone time, though. Friday in the afternoon, when Archie goes to the gym after school, as he usually does when they don’t have a game, he stops in his tracks when he sees that it’s already being used by no one other than Veronica.

She’s wearing a sports top and leggings, her hair split into two neat box braids because she is, _indeed_ , boxing, kicking the punching bag with fury. He’s so surprised to find her there that he doesn’t even remember to announce his presence. She wears preppy clothes and bows, she also wears lace and drinks hard liquor, and she _kickboxes_?

He wonders what she doesn’t do.

Veronica stops for a second, wiping sweat off her forehead and breathing hard, unaware that he’s watching her. She starts punching the bag in a rather aggressive way. She’s wearing gloves, at least, but she seems to be putting her whole weight into the punches she’s throwing. On reflex, Archie sets his bottle of water down and runs over to hold the bag for her before she falls onto the ground.

“Woah, hey, calm down.”

Veronica stops. She leans her forehead against the punching bag, panting. “What are you doing here?” she asks as she tries to catch her breath.

Archie feels a smile coming to his lips. She’s _so_ small, and yet, she was punching that bag like she could tear it apart. “I’m here everyday, Ronnie. Why are _you_ here?” he asks, looking around the bag so he can see her face. It’s a valid question — he’s seen Veronica in cheer practice ever since she moved to town, he knows that she goes for runs every now and then, but he’s never seen her in the school’s gym before.

She steps away from the bag, her breath more even, now. “I’m angry and I’m channeling my energy into something positive,” she starts taking off her gloves, a pout on her mouth. “Plus, I ate three chocolate bars.”

Ronnie looks up at him, almost a little apologetic. Archie feels his face _melting_ and can’t hold back a smile. A thought crosses his mind, then. “You’re not… angry with me, right?”

“No,” she says, almost immediately, and then a frown appears on her face. “ _Should_ I be angry with you?”

Archie’s eyes widen. “ _No_ , no. I mean, I just— yeah, no.”

Veronica giggles, shaking her head. She turns around and sets her boxing gloves down on a bench where she had previously left a bottle of water. She starts to drink it, facing away from him. Archie can’t really help but _stare_ , because those skin-tight leggings really show the shape of her figure and there are droplets of sweat on the exposed skin, running down the line of her spine.

He presses his lips together in a thin-line, but his mind comes back to his body when she turns around again. She isn’t smiling anymore — in fact, she looks pretty down. He clears up his throat when a _second thought_ crosses his mind and makes him a little disconcerted. “Did… Uh, did Chuck do something?”

Archie expects her to shoot him a deadly glare, but Veronica just sits down on the bench. “No. It’s my dad,” she says, and her shoulders fall, almost as if she’s been defeated. “He called me yesterday. He hasn’t spoken to me in weeks, and when he finally does, it’s because he needs me for something.”

“What does he need you for?” he asks, frowning, taking a step towards her.

“Some brunch that he’s hosting at one of his new buildings this weekend. He probably just needs my signature for something. Or to show me off as his lovely daughter who’s always by his side. And I’m stupid, so I said yes.” She heaves out a breath. Archie isn’t _used_ to seeing her like this — Veronica always has her head up, always confident and so sure. He wishes he knew what to do.

“Can’t you just… bail? Not go?”

She looks at him, smiling softly, but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes. “It doesn’t work that way, Archiekins.”

Archie doesn’t have anything to say about that, but he thinks he understands — not everyone has great parents like his dad or even his mom. He’s always watched as Alice Cooper ruled over her children's lives with an iron fist; seen heartbreaking stories, like Jughead’s father's addiction turned into the worst fallout possible. He knows that it might not be so easy, so he doesn’t suggest it again.

But he can’t really just stand there and allow her to be so sad, so he searches for anything that could make it better. “Do you have to stay there the whole weekend? We can hang out on Sunday if you want, watch one of your romcoms. I’ll let Vegas stay inside the house. I know you like him better than you like me.”

Ronnie laughs, quietly, and the sound lifts a hundred pounds off of Archie’s chest. She looks like she’s considering his invitation, when her face lights up as if she’s just had a great idea. “Or, you could come too!”

Archie knits his eyebrows together, not sure if she’s asking or affirming. “To your dad’s thing?”

“To New York, yes!” She gets up, suddenly chirpy.

He blinks for a moment, trying to slow down his thoughts and digest what she just said. “I— wow,” he manages to say. “I’ve never been to New York City before.”

It’s true. They had a field trip to NYC his freshman year, but Archie got the flu the night before. His dad didn’t let him go because he had a fever. Archie was bummed but not for long, because he soon learned that Jughead couldn’t afford going. So, Jughead spent the day with Archie, and they played video games the entire time. When Betty got back, late in the evening, she stopped by to give him a Knicks cap and a _I heart NYC_ magnet that he still has on his fridge.

“Are you joking?” Veronica’s mouth hangs open. “You _have_ to come, then! We’re getting the early train and the brunch thing probably will be over and done with by two. So we can spend the entire day there! Oh, my God, I can’t wait to show you around!”

“Yeah.” Archie takes a beat to get around this new perspective for his weekend — hopping on a train out of town so he can attend some business brunch for his fake-girlfriend’s dad and then spending the whole day in fucking _Manhattan._ But Veronica is smiling brightly, excited, he can’t help but feel like that too. “I mean, yeah, of course I’ll come!”

 

 

 

 

 

Archie is weirdly apprehensive to ask for his dad’s permission to go on a _field trip_ of his own with Veronica, but Fred seems thrilled. He tells Archie some tales of when he was younger and the world wasn’t such a mess — how he, FP Jones, and some other guys would take the train and just go to NYC every other weekend, trying to find venues for their band to play at and not succeeding because they were all underage. The talk about the lights, the vibe, and the music gets Archie super excited, so much so that he can barely sleep on Friday night.

The next day, Fred drives him to the train station, a small brick building that’s just outside of town. Veronica has already secured them round-trip tickets, as per her text last night, so Fred just gives him some extra cash and tells him to have fun and be careful.

“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, huh?” he tells Archie with a small smile and drives away.

Archie sits on a bench as he waits for Veronica, looking around. Not many people are hoping to catch a train before seven on a Saturday morning, and he feels jittery as he waits. They have to go to her father’s brunch as soon as they get there, so Archie is already wearing a light blue dress shirt and jeans. Ronnie told him not to wear a tie, but he brought one in his backpack, just in case.

“Morning,” Archie says, smiling a bit as he takes in the soft waves of her hair and the rosy shade of her lipstick. “You look nice.”

“You look quite good yourself.” She smiles too, reaching out to do something with the collar of his shirt, opening a second button. His heart does a little zing. “Our train will be here in fifteen minutes. We have to change trains in Poughkeepsie, but it’s first class from there. Thankfully.”

 

 

 

 

 

The train they catch in Poughkeepsie, the _Empire Service line_ , as Ronnie tells him, is quite different from the regular line that Archie has always been familiar with — they’re riding first class, so it’s _really_ comfortable, leather seats and footrests. They also don’t have to pay for beverages and snacks when the café cart comes around. Veronica tells him to sit by the window, and he feels like a little kid as the train goes south, running along the Hudson River.

It’s a beautiful day with clear blue skies, and he gets more and more excited as they approach Manhattan, his phone in his hand and his camera ready. He’s never really been into social media — his Instagram consists of some selfies with Vegas, bad pictures of himself, or random, funny things that catch his eye, like the time he was walked past the Mantle dealership and there was a red inflatable tube man right in front of it — but on the train, actually _going_ somewhere exciting for the first time in a long time, with Ronnie looking so pretty by his side and the sunlight streaming through the windows, he feels like taking pictures and showing them to the world.

He glances at Veronica to realize that she seems a little nervous, a little distant, tugging at the hem of her dress. She’s trying to keep it cool ever since they talked about it back at the gym, but Archie knows that all of this isn’t too easy for her. It’s funny — he hasn’t even met her dad yet, and he already doesn’t like him by default.

Archie watches her profile for a second, and then places a hand on top of hers, squeezing it a little. Veronica turns to him, and he smiles softly when their eyes meet. It doesn’t take too long for her to smile back, appreciating the support. “We should take a picture,” Archie says. “You know, for the people back home,” he adds, when she frowns.

Veronica squints her eyes as she thinks about it for a moment, and then she lifts up one shoulder in a shrug. “I guess it’s good lighting.”

Archie puts one arm around her, the other extended so there’s space for them to fit into the phone screen. It’s good lighting indeed — her eyes look pretty in the sun. They laugh as they make faces to the camera, exaggerated pouts, deep frowns and different smiles. Archie takes dozens of selfies with her. He doesn’t publish any, but it’s weirdly nice to know that he has them on his phone now, a proof of how it was like to be her boyfriend, although it isn’t real.

 

 

 

 

 

As they get closer to Manhattan, the landscape changes from green to grey and brick-red. At some point, the train goes underground, and they see nothing until it comes to a complete stop at Penn Station.

Different from the quaint building in Riverdale, this train station looks like the shopping mall in Centreville, or maybe like the airport in Albany, bright lights and shops all around, buzzing with people in a hurry. There’s a tall man waiting for them at the platform, wearing a suit, and he slightly bows his head to Veronica when he spots them. _He’s Andre_ , Veronica explains, her father’s driver.

They get into a town car very similar to the one that Smithers drives around. Archie slowly takes in the new atmosphere. Manhattan is _busy_ , so much busier than Chicago or Albany, the only big cities he’s ever been to. The traffic is horrible and noisy, and the buildings are _so_ tall. However, there’s something about it that’s fascinating, unique, and exciting. He can’t wait to explore these streets.

By his side, Veronica doesn’t talk much, fidgeting with her dress again. Archie places his hand on top of hers one more time, and this time she holds it, squeezes it even.

Lodge Industries is mostly a real estate/construction company, involved in about a fourth of the renovations in mid and lower Manhattan, and the brunch they need to attend will happen at Hell’s Kitchen — the opening party for Hiram Lodge’s most recent conquest. Veronica tells him all of this in the elevator as it goes up to the rooftop. She fixes his collar, smooths the skirt of her dress, and grabs his hand so they walk out together.

Her head is up, and she stops looking nervous as soon as they’re at the brunch.

Archie looks around, almost startled. It’s weird. When he thinks of _brunch_ , he thinks of coffee, orange juice, bacon, and toast in a booth at Pop’s, sitting across from people he’s been around his whole life, laughing at old jokes and some fifties’ music coming from the jukebox.

But it’s almost an actual garden on the rooftop, with _grass_ and plants and flowers everywhere. There’s a big buffet table with finger food, fruits, and pastries — some people are sitting down and eating, but they’re mostly standing up as waiters pass with champagne and mimosas. Everyone looks quite dressed up as they make conversation and laugh at each other in a weird way, women in heels and men wearing suits in light colors or dress shirts like himself. He can’t guess anyone’s ages — they all seem to be around the same age with their hair done and polished smiles.

“Veronica, darling,” a woman, that could be thirty or sixty and he wouldn’t know, says. Veronica lets go of his hand so she can greet the lady, an air kiss on each kiss. “How wonderful to see you. Your father was wondering when you’d arrive.”

“Nice to see you too, Mrs. Grande. How’s your grandson?” she asks, politely. It’s yet another side to Veronica that he could’ve only guessed but had never witnessed — she was _raised_ in this life and talking to these people comes to her as naturally as breathing. “Oh, this is Archibald, my boyfriend.”

 _Archibald._ He almost chuckles, as he wonders if Veronica’s talking about him before Mrs. Grande can answer about her grandson on purpose. Mrs. Grande takes notice of him, actually looking at him up and down, and he extends his hand for her to shake. “Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too, dear. Oh, Veronica. Elio will surely be upset when he hears about that,” Mrs. Grande half-jokes, and Veronica half-laughs, grabbing his hand again, linking their fingers together. Archie can’t help but frown because the woman starts walking away without any further word. It has got to be the weirdest social interaction Archie has ever been a part of.

“He isn’t upset. Last time I heard, he was sleeping with this 6’5 guy from the Netherlands,” Veronica tells him between her teeth, as she pulls him through the party guests. Archie snorts, not really sure of what to do with this information. Veronica stops walking, then — Archie follows her gaze when it lands on a man who he would know is Veronica’s father even if he hadn’t seen him before in pictures and television reports. He’s laughing and drinking champagne, and Archie thinks Veronica must have inherited her way of getting anything and everything she wants from him. She takes a deep breath, her fingers linked with Archie’s. “Okay, here goes nothing. _Daddy!_ ”

“ _Mija_.” Hiram Lodge smiles when he sees her, the very same business-like smile he’d just shot to the other man he was talking to. Veronica drops Archie’s hand again, this time walking into the embrace of her father. Archie shoves his hands in his pockets as he waits, and his throat tightens when he realizes how Veronica lingers onto the hug. “My beautiful daughter,” he says, more to his colleague than to anyone else, as he lets go of her. “You’re a bit late.”

“We took the train from Riverdale, Daddy,” she tells her father, her hand lingering on his forearm.

“Why? I could’ve sent you the jet,” Hiram answers, making everyone in the circle laugh a little, like he’d just made some incredible joke. Veronica chuckles too, seemingly uncomfortable.

“Well, I want you to meet someone,” she announces, and Archie squares his shoulder, stepping ahead. “Daddy, this is…”

“Archie Andrews,” Hiram Lodge completes for her, smiling politely and narrowing his eyes at the same time. “Yet another boy who’s captured my daughter’s heart,” he says, almost dismissively. Archie has to school his face into not frowning — he didn’t know Veronica had talked about him with her father, but she seems surprised herself.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Lodge,” Archie shakes Hiram’s hand, firmly but not too strongly. It’s kinda weird that the first time he meets a girlfriend’s father, she’s not even his girlfriend for real — Valerie’s dad wasn’t around since she was a kid, so he never got to know him. Or anyone from her family except her brother, Trev, not even her mother.

“Please. Fred Andrews’s son sure has the right to call me Hiram,” he says, with a polite smile that Archie doesn’t fully trust. He lets go of Archie’s hand, wrapping a hand around Veronica’s shoulder. “ _Mija_ , I want you to meet some people as well. Archie will be okay left alone, for a minute.”

 

 

 

 

 

They are gone for about fifteen minutes.

Archie stands alone, sipping on the mimosa a waiter offered him. It’s the third party they’ve gone to together, and he’s getting used to the fact that every time he’s out with Veronica, he will be without her for most of the time. She’s like a spotlight that everyone wants or needs to be around at some point — and she deals with it gracefully, throwing smiles around that mimic her father’s.

They keep posing for photographs, alone and with other people, Hiram’s arm around Veronica’s waist, looking like a picture-perfect duo.

Archie knows no one’s going to talk to him, so he might as well eat something. He takes a look at the brunch buffet, full of food he’s never tried before, like smoked salmon with a honey mustard glaze and Iberico ham. Archie tries some of the latter with a piece of toast, as the caterer recommends. It’s pretty good, but he’d have to eat at least three pounds of it to feel satisfied.

He’s on the balcony, mimosa and Iberico ham long gone, appreciating the view he’s getting to see for the first time. There are just so many buildings, exactly like the Spider-Man movies. The yellow taxis are small on the street below him.

Lost in thought, Archie only realizes that Hiram and Veronica are back when they’re right beside him, and Hiram gives him a small tap on his back, making him stand tall again.

“There he is. Having fun, Archie?” he asks, as if Archie is just a peer and not his daughter’s boyfriend.

“Y… Yeah.” Archie says, but he’s sure that Hiram doesn’t care at all about the answer — in fact, Hiram’s eyes keep wandering around the place, searching for more important business to attend to.

Veronica seems a little tense, by his side, her chin tilted up and her neck stiff. “It’s been a while, right Daddy?” She places a hand on Hiram’s arm, rubbing it a little. “How are things around here? I mis—”

“Oh, look. Matthew Bannister is here,” he interrupts her. “Your presence, today, was important, mija. Andre can drive you back to the station whenever you’re ready.”

It’s a somewhat perplexing experience for Archie, witnessing the whole thing playout: Hiram taking Veronica’s hand off his arm, bringing it to his lips, and kissing it lightly, his eyes on the guy that just arrived instead of his daughter’s face, and _her face_ , defenseless and broken all of a sudden.

Hiram leaves them there, going to greet the guy with the brightest beam, and Archie’s heart starts racing inside his chest. He doesn’t know what to do when her eyes start welling up, but then he does know — he thinks that the last thing she’d like is to have a breakdown where everyone can see, so he reaches out to wrap his hand around her wrist and pulls her closer, drawing her near until she can hide her face on his shirt.

She starts shaking inside his arms, and Archie just holds her, trying to keep everything together with all his might. He thinks that, from the outside, people will just think they’re embracing like a couple and no one will notice that she’s crying. He leans down a little, pressing his face to her hair, planting a kiss on the side of her head

Veronica presses against his chest, a sob escaping her throat. Archie feels like an idiot for knowing her for _so long_ and never knowing her at all, for not being there for her this whole time. He kisses her head again, breathing in the floral scent of her shampoo for a second, holding her a bit closer.

“You have to hold me, so I won’t punch him in the face,” Archie jokes just because he feels like he should. For a second, he wonders if he said the wrong thing, but then Veronica makes a muffled sound between another sob and a laugh. It makes he smiles a bit. “I swear, I’ll kick his ass.”

Veronica laughs again and pulls apart a little, looking up at him, soft eyes still teary. “You’d be his enemy for an eternity,” she says so quietly that it almost sounds like a _thank you._

Archie discreetly dries the traces of tears under her eyes with his thumb, shrugging. “I don’t need to impress him for real, so I don’t care,” he says, and she chuckles, eyelashes still wet. Archie bites his lower lip — he _could kiss_ her, right now. “Let’s leave, okay?”

She nods. “Okay.”

 

 

 

 

 

Archie says he’s hungry, so they end up a few blocks away on the rooftop of a building, at 51st and 9th, a small Thai food restaurant that has an open kitchen and walls covered with wood panels. Archie watches her over his bowl of stir-fry chicken and curry, noticing that she’s only picking at her noodles with her chopsticks, her beautiful face still softened by sadness.

“I’m sorry,” he says, maybe for the seventh time since they left her father’s brunch. Veronica looks up at him, stretching her lips in a mildly-impatient smile — it’s also the seventh time she’ll need to tell him _not to be sorry_. Archie chuckles but then confesses, “I just hate seeing you like this.”

Veronica takes in a deep breath. “It’s always been like this with him,” she says as she breathes out. Archie listens as he chews on his food. “I just… _really_ need to work on my expectations, you know?”

He swallows with some water and nods, because he knows. Hell, he _really_ knows. When his mom first moved out of the house and into a small, temporary place next to the town hall, he really hoped she wasn’t going to take the job in Chicago, that she and his dad would stop fighting and try to work things out, that she’d keep stopping by for dinner every day. He’d spend entire afternoons in her rented apartment, helping her put things inside of cardboard boxes, and he still couldn’t see that she was _leaving_ until the day everything was packed and she left.

“The first time I went to visit my mom in Chicago,” he starts, and Veronica finally starts eating some of her noodles — it encourages him to go on, “it was some long weekend. I don’t know. I was so excited for some reason. You know, a big city and all. She picked me up at the airport and on the way to her new place, she told me all the fun things we were going to do together. We did do some things, but she also had to work a lot, and I don’t know.” Archie shrugs. “Nothing was enough.”

He’s never really talked about this with anyone. Betty was so sweet but also so patronizing, in a way that made him feel a bit uncomfortable. Jughead always had so many problems at home that he didn’t want to add anything else onto the pile, and Archie never found anyone else that actually listened to him. Veronica, though, is doing it, right now, absorbing what he has to say instead of pitying him, and he feels completely safe about opening up. “And then one day, that disappointing feeling?” he says, and she nods, both knowing exactly what he means. “It just… Passed. I don’t know if I forgave her, or if I stopped missing her so much, but it was just gone. I think I kinda realized that I wasn’t the most important thing in her life, which sucks, because she’s my mom, but it is what it is.”

Veronica raises one eyebrow. “ _It is what it is?_ ” she asks, her voice a little teasing, her expression amused. “That’s your big conclusion?”

“Well… Yeah,” Archie says, apologetic, and starts laughing because it _is_ sort of ridiculous. Veronica follows him, giggling at first, and then she laughs _for real_ , hiding her mouth with her hands, her eyes squinting and shining. He crumples a napkin into a ball and flicks it at her. She dodges it.

He watches as her laughter weakens, pleased with himself. They both take deep breaths.

“Do you want to go back home?” he asks.

Veronica makes a face. “No way. I’m not letting my dad ruin your first Manhattan experience,” she says, determined. “We’ll finish this up and start the tour. But I am going to need new shoes.”

 

 

 

 

 

Since she paid for the train tickets, Archie pays for lunch and for the cab that she hails with ease to get them to the Upper West Side, her neighborhood when she lived in NYC. She shows him The Dakota, a residence building from the nineteenth-century that she grew up in, and tells him that, after the divorce, her father moved to a big suite in The Excelsior Hotel.

Archie is kinda scared that seeing her childhood home will make her sad again, but she just looks proud and nostalgic, grabbing his hand so they can cross the avenue and enter Central Park.

They spend about an hour crossing Central Park — Veronica explains that they’d need a whole day _only there_ to know everything, and there’s too much to do and too little time. To be honest, they probably could cross from West to East in fifteen minutes, but Archie is mesmerized by the whole _feel_ of it, the tall buildings hovering over the trees, reflecting on the lake’s surface.

There’s a stand selling all different kinds of shit, and a disposable camera catches his eye. Veronica frowns, reminding him that _they have phones for that, now_ , but he decides to buy it anyway.

“This is way cooler than Instagram,” he tells her, determined, already testing out his new toy.

She rolls her eyes, pretending that she’s above the _excellency_ of his cheap camera, but ends up posing for him at the famous (that wasn’t so famous to Archie before) Bethesda Fountain, anyway.

When they reach the other side of the park, stepping onto the Upper East Side, Veronica pulls him into a Tory Burch store, to buy ballet flats so she can walk around more comfortably. She spends an _eternity_ choosing between two models that look exactly the same to Archie, but he doesn’t really mind — he just sits back and watches as she walks around with one foot in a “different” shoe, looking at the mirror so she can decide. Archie feels a chivalrous need to offer to buy her the shoes. So, he secretly looks at the price tag, but they’re three-hundred dollars.

In the end, she _can’t_ choose and buys _both_ pairs, plus a denim jacket that she thinks it’s _so cute_ , and he can’t deny that it looks really good on her.

“Your boyfriend is really patient,” Archie hears the assistant tell Veronica when she stands at the counter to pay for the items. Veronica giggles, looking over her shoulder and flashing him a smile that makes his stomach flip.

“He’s the best,” she answers, and Archie smiles proudly to himself.

 

 

 

 

 

Veronica scowls, bats her eyelashes and even uses the _do you even know who you’re talking to?_ card, but they’re not allowed to skip-the-line at the Empire State Building having not bought tickets in advance. It’s a pretty long line — and it’s already past three — so Archie just wraps one arm around her shoulder and steers her away from the entrance, saying that he doesn’t mind not going up. She pouts, defeated, and offers to call her dad — Hiram would solve it in a minute.

When Archie doesn’t budge, Ronnie tries to make up for it (even if he reassures her a hundred times that it isn’t needed) by dragging him into another store at Madison Avenue, full of trendy clothes for men. He doesn’t particularly want to try anything on, but when she hands him a blue and white, thin-striped polo and a jacket that has the same style as his letterman from Riverdale High, except it's navy and has a bunch of stickers all over it, and asks, “Please? For me?” he has no choice but to put them on.

Archie likes the whole outfit — it’s _way_ more comfortable than his dress shirt, and looks cool, too — but he doesn’t have money for it, and he doesn’t want her to spend more money on him. But when she looks at him up and down and smiles in approval, he knows that the clothes will be his whether he wants it or not.

Different from the Empire State Building security guard, Archie doesn’t stand a chance against her charms.

 

 

 

 

 

Looking good in their new clothes, they walk around the East Village, and the neighborhood _speaks_ to Archie’s soul, full of music stores and brick buildings that he can see himself living at, one day. He feels more understanding of his mother than he’s ever felt before — there’s just _so much_ to the world. It will be impossible to stay in Riverdale for the rest of his life.

They stop to buy coffees to go and reach the Brooklyn Bridge as the sun is almost setting. Veronica entertains him as he looks at the view from the bridge, telling him some funny stories from when she used to go to an all-girls school before moving to Riverdale. Archie asks a random person to take a picture of them on the bridge; Ronnie points out that maybe his crappy camera won’t do well in the low lighting and asks the woman to snap one with her phone, as well.

It’s getting chiller by the hour, and the sky is getting darker. They start heading back to Penn Station — their train leaves at seven — when Veronica _remembers_ that they haven't seen Times Square.

“Are you sure we’re not going to miss the train?” he asks, already being pulled by her.

“I’d rather miss the train than let you miss _Times Square_!” she says, her hand locked with his as she walks at a slightly faster pace. “Plus, it’s only a couple of blocks away.”

It’s _not_ only a couple of blocks away. They walk a little more than half a mile, and Archie _wants_ to complain and talk about the train again, but it turns out that he _can’t_ when they get to where 7th meets Broadway.

“Oh, my God,” Archie says, mesmerized by all the lights and the movement around them. All of the songs that were written about New York City fall right into place. “Ronnie, _wow_!”

Archie hears her giggle, but he’s really drawn by the size of everything surrounding him. He just shoves his hands in his jeans pockets and looks around, not being able to stop smiling. He’s still doing so, when he glances back at her, and at some point, she’s taken her phone out to take pictures like the other dozens of tourists there that are doing the exact same thing.

She’s beaming, brighter than the lights. Archie gets his disposable camera and _finishes it_ with clicks of Times Square and Ronnie smiling.

“Let’s take a selfie,” she says, already positioning herself by his side, her hand around his waist. She’s smaller than him, so he takes the phone from her hand and extends his arm, trying to find a good angle that will get both them and the background.

Archie changes the angle slightly, only to feel Veronica tiptoeing so she can plant a kiss on his cheek. A huge smile shows up on his face.

“Do you guys want me to take a picture of you?” a woman suddenly offers them. Archie glances at Veronica, and simply she nods. Archie gives the phone to the woman and wraps his arm around Veronica’s shoulder when the woman tells them to get closer. “Cheese!”

They smile bigger — Archie ends up looking at Veronica to catch it on her face, and his own smile soften as he looks at her, so beautiful with her hair up after all of the walking, a few strands of raven hair falling around her face. She seems to realize that he’s _staring_ at her, because she looks up, their eyes meeting.

“That’s great! How about a kiss?”

Archie parts his lips for a second, confused by the suggestion. He wants to. He _really_ wants to. But even though Times Square is as public as it gets, they’re not in _Riverdale_ public — he isn’t sure what _Veronica_ wants.

There isn’t much time to deliberate — Veronica winks at him and leans forward, her lips landing on his. Archie takes in a deep breath when their lips touch, automatically bringing both of his hands up to cup her face, his heart suddenly hammering against his chest as he gently pulls her lower lip between his.

She sinks her fingers into his back, and despite the thick fabric of his jacket, the pressure sends a shiver down his spine.

Veronica pulls away first, so _collected_ as she gets her phone back and thanks the stranger for her kindness. Archie thanks her too, with a small wave.

“These are seriously cute,” Veronica says, smiling down at her phone as she looks at the pictures.

“Ronnie?” he calls. She looks up at him, and he waits for the usual rush of blood to come to his face. It never really does. He feels so _at peace_ in the middle of all this buzz, his heart so full. “Thanks for bringing me here,” he says and means it.

“Thanks for being here,” she says, her eyes all kinds of soft, reflecting all of the lights.

 

 

 

 

 

Archie and Veronica do miss the 7pm train, the next one leaving at nine, so Archie calls his dad to announce that they’ll only arrive in Riverdale past-midnight. Fred doesn’t particularly like it — _you told me you’d be here three hours ago_ — but tells him to call so he can pick them up when they get there.

They grab burgers for the trip, and Veronica teases that she’ll post one of their pictures on her Instagram, _“for the people back home”_. Archie watches her mess around with filters and different sizes and glances away to catch one last sight of the city out the window, nostalgia soon filling his chest. This is the best day he’s had since _forever_ , despite the upsetting start with Hiram Lodge, and he’s missing it already.

Veronica falls asleep halfway to Poughkeepsie, her head falling on his shoulder. Archie lifts his arm so she can rest a little more comfortably, her face on his chest and his hand on her arm. As she breathes evenly, he gets his phone so he can check what she actually did with the picture — the notification of her tagging him had arrived almost half an hour ago, but he was lost in thought.

The photo she chose is their kissing picture, their clothes fitting in nicely with the colorful atmosphere, the darkening sky only making the lights brighter. Archie smiles a little when he sees the way she was leaning against him, on the tip of her toes, his hands cupping her face. The caption that she chose — _pure bliss_ followed by a purple heart emoji — makes him travel back to the moment, almost feeling it happen all over again, that stillness in time that he’s experienced only a few times in his young life.

There are a few comments on the picture, already, and Archie curiously opens the thread so he can see them. They’re mostly from her girlfriends, things like heart-eye emojis and _omg!!!_ Kevin also commented, calling them his favorite thing in the world, making Archie chuckle, quietly.

The last comment on the thread catches his eye. It’s from **_bettycoop_** and it doesn’t say much — only a sparkling heart emoji followed by a smiley one.

Reading Betty’s name makes Archie’s grin fade a little, because it brings him abruptly back to the reality. Veronica published this photo because she wants Chuck to see it, to be jealous of it, and Archie is only in it because he agreed to a contract. They’re just friends, nothing but that, and this — _this_ , their perfect kiss in the perfect spot, her head against his chest right now, the _pure bliss_ she described — isn’t real.

Archie turns his face a bit, his lips brushing against her hair. He closes his eyes, breathing in.

It isn’t real.

_Right?_

 

 

 

 

_tbc_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay beautiful people, i am BACK! with one more chapter of TATG, a fic who is equally a blessing and a curse lol.
> 
> last time we were here, veronica got jealous of barchie minimal interactions, shunned him for a week and then showed up at his door looking like a snack! now, let's see where this take us.
> 
> this chapter was probably the most fun i've had writing this fic, and i hope you enjoy it as much as i did. i'm gonna answer all your beautiful comments a little bit later. thanks as usual for my girls nic and ak!
> 
> songs for this chapter:
> 
>   * I like me better - LAUV
>   * Holding On - Nightly
>   * Have You Ever Been In Love - The Ivy
>   * Harvest Moon - Handsome Ghost
> 



	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> there are spoilers for the movie _Casablanca_ in this chapter, sorry for that xD

_inhale and exhale you,_  
_it's a little too much for me_

 

::  
::  
::

 

They arrive in Riverdale way past midnight, after dozing on and off, all the way from New York to Poughkeepsie, and almost missing their connecting train. As they wait at the station for Fred to arrive, Veronica nestles against his frame. Archie swings an arm around her and presses his chin to her head. They’ve been in silence almost the whole ride, which is comfortable after spending so much time in the buzz of the city.

His body is exhausted, but his senses are perfectly awake. He feels her rising up and down in his embrace, the warmth of her steady breath on his t-shirt, the fading scent of her hair in his nostrils. Archie brushes his lips on her hair, holding on just a little bit more before they have to go back to pretending.

Not that they ever stopped pretending, anyway.

The wheels from his dad’s truck against the gravel cut through the deep silence. Archie gives Veronica’s shoulder a squeeze, and she moves away from his hold, her eyes soft and tired when she throws him a gentle smile.

Fred says _hello_ when they both get in the car, Ronnie in the backseat. Archie notices that his father is wearing flannel pajama pants and feels a little bad for making him get up in the middle of the night to pick them up. He’s pretty sure that he’s going to get grounded, or at least scolded, for arriving three hours later than what had been arranged — especially because through the whole ride from the station to The Pembrooke, Fred says nothing.

They stop in front of the building, and Archie glances over his shoulder to see Veronica gathering her shopping bags, the skirt of her dress forming a puddle of green fabric around her. “Thanks for the ride, Mr. A,” she says, sweetly. Fred nods and smiles a little, looking at her through the rearview mirror — she turns to Archie then, reaching out a hand to touch his shoulder. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow?”

“Yeah.”

Veronica slides forward on the seat, leaning in to give him the quickest of pecks. It’s so unexpected that Archie doesn’t even close his eyes, his body flinching. “Goodnight,” she wishes before leaving the car.

Archie feels a blush rush to his face and his heartbeat at a stronger pace. He slowly releases the air inside his lungs, legs a bit jittery, all of a sudden. Fred waits until she’s climbed the few steps of The Pembrooke’s main entrance and is in the building to drive away.

“Did you have fun with your girlfriend in Manhattan?” his dad pulls him out of his thoughts, once they’re getting closer to their house.

Archie bites his lip. It’s still crazy to hear someone else refer to Veronica Lodge as his _girlfriend._

“Yeah,” he breathes out. “It was an amazing day.”

“I’m glad. Veronica is a nice girl,” Fred says, his eyes on the road ahead. All the streets are really empty in Riverdale, at this hour, even though it’s a Saturday night. Archie feels a lump grow in his throat. “I can see that she’s really taken with you, and I’m really glad to see you enjoying things, going out again, singing in the shower.” He chuckles. “I’m happy for you, son. It’s nice to be in love.” Fred smiles, knowingly.

Archie feels his cheeks heat up. “I’m—”

 _Not,_ he means to say, even though it dies on his tongue _._ He’s _not._ He’s happy to have Ronnie around. She’s his friend, maybe his _best_ friend lately, since everyone else has kind of been put on hold so he could give her his attention. Which she deserved, of course she did. Veronica is kind, tough, and beautiful. He likes that he can make her laugh. And spending the day around her without having to worry about appearances or missteps _was_ amazing, but that doesn’t mean—

“—but that doesn’t mean you can break the rules, okay?” Fred’s expression and voice are more serious when he makes a turn on Elm Street, slowing down as they approach their home. “I hope the next time you say you’re going to get here at ten, you’ll be here at ten. Or at least call me so I’m not worried sick.”

Archie heaves out a breath, his face and neck still hot. “I’m sorry, Dad.” He scratches the back of his head, not sure if he’s sorry for worrying his dad or for getting him so _involved_ with this situation, which is supposed to be temporary. “We missed our train and lost track of time, but it won’t happen again.”

“I know it won’t, son.” Fred parks the truck in front of their house, in its usual spot. “But tomorrow you’re staying home, yeah? You’re going to finish your homework and help me do the laundry. And no Veronica.” Fred gives him a pointed look. “Deal?

He knew he’d end the weekend grounded, so it doesn’t even surprise him. What _does_ disconcert him is everything else. Archie looks over at his dad. _His dad_ , the person that's always known him best, that could always see right through his lies, from the silliest to the most intricate. 

Well, apparently, he hasn’t seen through this one. “Deal.”

 

 

 

 

 

The first thing Archie does when he wakes up on Sunday is text Ronnie to tell her about his temporary house-arrest. He wouldn’t want her thinking that he’s avoiding her for some reason, or anything like that.

He stays a few extra minutes in bed, screwing around on his phone, switching between various forms of social media. On Instagram, inevitably, he ends up at the picture Veronica posted last night. It has hundreds of likes already, and Betty’s emojis are lost amongst people he didn’t even _know,_ comments calling them _the cutest_ and many variations of that.

Archie doesn’t care for the buzz. He allows himself to stare at the picture until he feels like closing his eyes and remembering that moment, the happiness blooming in his chest and the texture of her lips properly pressed to his.

He sets his phone down on his sternum and covers his face with the pillow, sighing into it, frustration and _longing_ washing over him, all at once. He misses Manhattan, already. And, fuck, he misses Veronica, too, even though it’s been only _hours_ since they’ve last seen each other.

A couple of minutes later, his phone buzzes. Archie almost immediately uncovers his face to check, and the notification with her name makes him involuntarily hold his breath.

**_good morning. aw, i'm so sorry your dad got mad. can i do something to fix it??_ **

He swallows, feeling his lips curl up. **_it’s ok. it’s just today_** _,_ he writes, and then, because he can’t quite forget drying the tears from her eyes or the quiver of her body when she cried with her face on his chest. ** _u alright?_**

**_i'm okay, archiekins. thank you again, so much._ **

He smiles a bit when he sees her punctuate the line with the same purple emoji she added after the _pure bliss_ caption under their picture. Archie wonders what he can write that won’t immediately put a halt to the conversation, but she’s faster than him.

**_you’re the best fake-boyfriend ever, lover boy._ **

She adds more hearts after this, but this time, Archie doesn’t smile. It’s just another reminder, more proof that nothing has changed between them. He didn’t even think it _would_ change something. He just— 

Archie sighs again, setting his phone down. The biggest proof that he _isn’t_ in love with Veronica is that whatever he _is_ feeling isn’t _nice_ at all, like his father described. It goes from warm and glowing to upsetting and overpowering in a matter of _seconds_ and, honestly, he wishes he wasn’t feeling it. He was better off without it.                                                   

 

 

 

 

 

His to-do list ends with taking Vegas for a walk around the block. He’s actually glad to spend his day doing chores because they require a certain amount of prep and concentration. Solving algebra questions until his eyes are blurry, doing laundry for excruciatingly long hours, and breathing fresh air while walking Vegas are great ways to bring him back to _reality_.

It’s around five in the afternoon when he comes back to Elm Street and sees, stopping in his tracks, a black-haired boy leaving Betty’s front door. Archie knits his eyebrows together, _confused_ , when he notices that the boy isn’t anyone else but Reggie Mantle.

Betty stays at the door when Reggie, with a small wave, leaves her house, a backpack hanging from his left shoulder. She watches him go on the opposite direction from Archie and curls the edge of her ponytail around her finger. Archie’s mind is completely blank for a moment, the only thought being: _what?_

Vegas is impatient and pulls Archie with some force. “Vegas!” Archie whispers, pulling his dog back.

The sudden movement probably catches Betty's eye because she turns around. She seems a bit startled when she notices Archie but then smiles, waving a hand for him to come closer. Archie doesn’t have much of a choice, especially because Vegas seems to be determined to go say hello to their neighbor.

“Hey, you guys,” Betty greets, meeting them halfway on her front porch. She scratches Vegas’s ears, and the dog happily wiggles his tail.

“Hey,” Archie says, observing the scene. The days are longer now that spring is here, and the sky is a pale blue that matches Betty’s jacket. “Uh… Not to pry,” he scratches the back of his neck, knowing that he’s already prying, “but did I just see Reggie Mantle leave your house?”

“Oh.” Betty seems a bit surprised by his question, her cheeks suddenly turning pink. She gets up, shoving her hands into her jeans pockets. “Yeah. He’s getting F’s in chemistry, so I’m tutoring him on Sundays.”

Archie makes a face. “I thought you couldn’t stand him,” he says. He clearly remembers how many times Betty rolled her eyes every time Archie invited Reggie for a movie night or talked about hanging out with him.

“I can’t,” she says, sighing and rolling her eyes the same way Archie had just recalled. “But, apparently, _no one_ can stand him. All the other tutors were adamant about not helping him, and Weatherbee asked me.” She shrugs. A part of Archie would feel bad for Reggie, if he wasn’t still angry. “I couldn’t really say no.”

Archie’s bitterness about Reggie fades away when he feels a smile tugging at his lips, followed by a chuckle. Betty probably wouldn’t be able to say no to someone who was failing at school, no matter who they were. She saved his and Jughead’s asses more than once throughout the years, and she always played it down as them being her friends, but it was just in her nature, to solve problems and fix things.

“He’s lucky to have you,” he says, honestly, but instantly regrets it when he realizes she looks up at him with a slight glimmer in her eyes, something he recognizes from a long time ago. Now, she’s going to ask him about the goddamn song; Archie just knows she will, and it will ruin the first real conversation they’ve had in such a long time.

Betty leans down to give Vegas some more attention. “I thought you’d be mad if you knew I was tutoring him,” she says, making Archie frown. “I mean, I know you two are in a fight.”

Archie clenches his jaw, shaking his head since she’s still looking at Vegas. She’s using that common, patronizing Betty voice, which is very familiar to Archie, so he doesn’t really care. What makes him somewhat angry is the fact that Reggie talked about it with her, even though he knows Betty is involved in that mess.

“Well, there’s a reason for that,” Archie heaves out a breath, “but I wouldn’t want him to fail his classes or anything.”

Betty smiles as she pats Vegas’s head. “Juggie said something similar when I told him. I thought he’d be mad too, because of the way Reggie used to treat him, back in the day.”

A wave of relief Archie wasn’t expecting reaches him when he hears her mention Jughead with such tenderness. Maybe that means she won’t bring the song up, and that this whole misunderstanding is water under the bridge. “How…” he clears his throat, almost uncertain if he’ll ask. “How are things with Jug?”

Betty straightens up, taking a deep breath that makes her shoulders rise and fall. “He’s doing well at Southside High. He made new friends, too, which, you know how it is when it comes to Jughead.” She grins, and Archie laughs a little, a weird forlorn feeling settling inside his stomach. “It’s not always easy, you know? He doesn’t feel so welcomed in the Northside anymore, so he’s always in the Southside, now. Things between us have been better if I’m honest.”

“Oh,” Archie says, tightening his grip around Vegas’s leash. Her eyes are downcast for a moment — and Archie curses himself for managing to make her sad again — but she soon tilts her chin up and sets her jaw with determination and smiles.

“We’re going to be okay. I love him,” she says, her voice firm and resolute. “Everything will be alright.”

Archie admires her, as he usually does, how she’s always so sure of everything, so different from him. He thinks of the Firebird in the garage, perhaps the only thing Betty ever left without fixing — and that was mostly on him, anyway.

They end up sitting on the steps of Betty’s front porch, watching as Vegas happily digs holes in Alice Cooper’s immaculate front yard — something Betty says she’ll deal with later — and keep talking. It seems like the first time in forever, because it _is_ the first time in forever. At some point, Archie stops expecting that everything will be ruined when she asks him about the song.

She doesn’t ask him. In fact, the only thing she does ask him about, besides how his dad is doing and how Archie’s feeling about the next Bulldog game, is how visiting Manhattan with Veronica was.

Archie was kinda hoping that this topic wouldn’t come up, because he isn't in the mood to tell her any lies, but Betty probably knew it was his first time in the Big Apple, which was too much of an exciting thing to be glossed over. “It was…” he starts and stops, sighing. “Really nice.”

He doesn’t look, but he can feel Betty smile. “Did you two just decide to go? She didn’t tell me anything about it.”

“She had this thing she needed to attend for her father. We decided to spend the rest of the day there.” Archie chuckles as he remembers. “She almost threw a fit because we couldn’t go up the Empire State Building,” he says, and Betty laughs, because she knows Veronica well.

“So, you’ve met Hiram Lodge, huh?” Betty bumps her shoulder with his, a playful tune in her voice. “Sounds serious.”

Archie laughs for a moment before it fades as he lies again. “Yeah,” he breathes, staring intently at his feet. There’s a hole in his left Chucks.

“Maybe we should double-date,” Betty muses, optimistic. Archie looks at her, his eyebrows travelling towards his hairline, inquisitive and surprised — dealing with Jughead and Veronica sharing the same space sounds like a nightmare. 

Betty laughs at the look on his face. “You’re right. Terrible idea.”

 

 

 

 

 

Veronica doesn't text him to ask about coffee that evening. Archie knows that it's probably because he hasn't answered her last message, but as much as he feels guilty for not doing so, he also hates just _looking_ at it.

When Monday morning arrives, Archie realizes he's kind of dreading going to school. There's no concrete reason for that, except the fact that people are going to talk about New York and ask him questions about him and Veronica that he has no will to answer.

The anxiety follows him through his quick routine: his clothes feel dumb, his hair won't stay the way he wants it to even though he tries hard with the hair wax, and the eggs his dad fries for breakfast taste bland. He can't pay attention to the conversation his dad tries to make on the way to school — something about Marcus and the weekend — and, when he's dropped off, he feels dumb for being empty-handed and not having the courage to talk to Veronica the night before.

(In his defense, she didn't talk to him either, but _still._ )

Walking into the building, he's hit by all the Spring Dance posters and the Blossom twins’ voices as they announce ticket sales. Cheryl raises her eyebrows at him when he walks by, and he sees both Chuck and Reggie approaching the table to buy tickets. The whole scenario makes him feel even more jittery.

He finally gets to his locker after what seems an eternity. He's about to text Veronica to let her know he isn't waiting for her in the courtyard when she basically _materializes_ next to him, her hair up in a ponytail — kind of like the ones Betty wears all the time, but different, wisps of black hair falling around her face. There are pearls embellishing her V-neck grey top, and her smiling lips are painted red. It's the weirdest thing, but the sight of her face and the brightness of her lipstick quiets his mind completely.

She shoves a warm cup of coffee in his hand. “Morning,” she says, taking one step closer to him. Archie swallows and leans down to give her a _hello_ peck because it's what has become normal for them, and because he's drawn to her mouth like a moth to a flame.

He ends up kissing her smile, lips against her teeth, and his heart does a strange thing that gets him grinning too. “Morning.” He pulls away, frowning a little, wondering why she smiled bigger, and why she’s still smiling.

“You went MIA yesterday,” she comments, leaning against the locker beside his. “Did your dad confiscate your phone?”

Archie doesn't have it in him to tell her that he was just busy trying not to be upset with her because she reminded him of their truth, or that he spent a lot of time actually talking to Betty on her front porch. He also doesn't have it in him to tell her that he spent the other portion of his Sunday really confused about whatever was happening inside of him whenever she was around him, so he just nods, scratching the back of his head.

Luckily for him, it’s one of these mornings when Veronica has so much to say that she doesn’t even require that he says anything back — she pouts a bit, and then takes one sip of coffee before she starts talking about her mom, about how she made the mistake of telling Hermione what happened at the brunch, and how she actually gave Veronica an _I told you so_ preach that was totally uncalled for. Archie nods and listens, as he takes the books he’ll need for the first few periods.

“But anyway,” Veronica heaves out a long breath, “I really hope your dad wasn’t too upset about us coming home late.” And, then, she’s reaching out her hand to touch Archie’s face and he parts his lips, suddenly too aware of the way her thumb rubs his skin, even if she pulls her hand away a small second later. “I can send him Magnolia cupcakes,” she ponders. “I _will_ send him Magnolia cupcakes. What’s his favorite flavor?”

The first bell rings, and the kids all over the hallways start getting up and steering themselves to their classrooms. “He likes everything,” he says.

“One of each, it is.” She smiles, content, and raises her arms in a stretch, yawning. It's such a human thing to do, and the sight makes him smile until he notices that her t-shirt has lifted and revealed a strip of her stomach. The glimpse of her bare skin makes his mouth dry. “Let’s go? I have to run by my locker.” 

She takes his hand when he starts to follow her, her fingers just lightly grazing against his.

 

 

 

 

 

Time goes by faster than anticipated. Veronica snaps back into their _faking it_ routine really quickly, sitting next to him everywhere and holding his hand whenever they go somewhere together, kissing him every three or four daily kisses they’ve silently planned from the start. It seems that it’s very easy for her, and Archie can’t understand why it’s not the same for him, why he can’t stop overthinking everything that happens.

Like midweek, when he learns, while sitting with Ronnie, Ginger, and Cheryl, that they’re planning to buy their Spring Dance outfits very soon. Ronnie hasn’t asked him to buy tickets yet, and he's unsure if he should make that move or not.

"Do you need me to buy anything?" he finds himself asking post-lunch, when just the two of them are left at the cafeteria table. "To match you, I mean," he adds when she raises her eyebrows, intrigued.

"It's not prom, Archiekins," she says, brushing something off his shoulder. She leaves her hand there for a bit, and it gets him a little nervous — he can't remember if she's always been so handsy around him, or if he's just noticing it _now_ , for some reason, how she always seems to be touching him, even if they're not in public. "You just need to look gorgeous, which I'm sure, won't be too much of a problem." 

Sometimes, when she says things like this and bats her thick, dark eyelashes at him, Archie wonders _damn, is she flirting with me_? But, then, as fast as it comes, the moment passes and they're back to what isn't real. Or, to what _is_ real and not happening only in his head.

 

 

 

 

 

It's nice to be on good terms with Betty again. It's one less thing he needs to worry about — how to behave around her. She has given up on asking about the song, and she's willing to make things work between her and Jughead. It’s a good thing, because with Spring Break just around the corner, his agreement with Ronnie would reach its expiration date and things needed to be in their proper place. Betty and Jughead. Archie. Veronica.

On Friday, just after school, he’s outside as the Bulldogs and Vixens gather, waiting for the bus that will take them to their away game against the Centreville High Lions, when he spots Betty alone. She’s already wearing her blue cheerleader uniform, leaning against a wall, her cellphone in hand. Archie remembers, vaguely, when she became a Vixen, back in the beginning of sophomore year — Veronica was the one who pushed her to do it, offered to audition with her, helped her get into the spot she had wanted since freshman year.

 _Can you believe I’m dating a cheerleader?_ Jughead mentioned, once, when they were watching Betty and Ronnie jumping around the field. They were just sitting on the bleachers, that day, talking about nothing and everything all at once. Archie remembers chuckling and saying _no_ , because he never pictured _Jughead Jones_ being caught with such a _mainstream_ thing like that. The thought makes Archie miss him.

He takes a step towards Betty to ask if Jughead will attend the game, since it’s not in Riverdale, and if they could grab a bite at Pop’s when it’s over, but he stops when he sees Reggie approaching her first.

“I said I’d finish the quiz before the game,” he hears Reggie say with a smug expression, handing in some papers to her, and Betty smiles, almost as if she’s proud. “Now, is Mama Coop going to watch us destroy the Lions?”

She rolls her eyes then, smacking Reggie’s arm with the papers he just gave her. “Your obsession with my mom and my sister needs to stop.”

Archie snorts, shaking his head, almost forgetting that he’s still angry with Reggie. He turns around to try to find Veronica in the middle of all the buzz — he can ask Betty about Jug and Pop’s later — and feels his lips curling up when he finds her, drawn to her as she laughs out loud about something Heather just said. It might be all a lie, but he can’t deny that he feels really _honored_ when he’s reminded that _that girl_ , with that smile, somehow thought _he_ is someone she’d like to be seen with.

And, just because they’ve somehow become so synchronized ever since they started this craziness, she notices that he’s been looking at her and winks at him when their eyes meet, giving him a small smile that Archie sometimes likes to believe is meant only for him.

Veronica Lodge. _Wow._

It never ceases to catch him off guard.

 

 

 

 

 

Contrary to Reggie’s prediction, the _Lions_ destroy the Bulldogs. Archie isn’t sure what happens, but it’s a _dumb_ game. And at some point, he could see, from beneath his helmet, Cheryl Blossom throw an actual tantrum and step on her pompoms.

After hitting the showers, the Riverdale High players make a _walk of shame_ back to their bus. The Vixens are already there, occupying most of the seats in the front. They need to leave quickly, so Archie takes an empty seat by the window that he spots in the back, not worrying about logistics. Reggie ends up sitting next to him, blowing out a breath. Archie frowns, but he doesn’t have it in him to send Reggie away in this particular moment, with the other team being loud and unbearable outside.

Once they’re back on the road, Coach Clayton says quick, encouraging words, telling them there’s always another game and that _the world keeps turning_. When he’s done, Cheryl gets up from the seat she’s sharing with her girlfriend and warns everyone that if they don’t win the championship during her last year of high school, she _will_ hunt everyone down and have them murdered.

The team laughs, briefly, but it’s clear that half of them are not sure if Cheryl is just joking.

After that, Chuck gets up too. The captain makes sure to walk down the bus aisle and compliment the players as he usually does, one by one, even though he seems more disappointed than his dad. Chuck shakes Reggie’s hand, congratulating him for the points. He shakes Archie’s hand too, sighing. “Thanks for the effort, Andrews.”

Chuck goes back to his seat next to his father, in the first row. Archie knits his eyebrows together, and Reggie snorts. “Talk about someone who’s _pressed_ ,” he mentions. Archie glances over at him, as confused as before.

“Uh.” Archie has nothing to say.

“This game sucked,” Reggie says. Archie expected Chuck’s attitude, but he still has no idea why Reggie is sitting next to him, or even _talking to him_ at all, or why he isn’t telling Reggie to fuck off.

Archie reaches for his backpack that’s on the floor, between his legs, and takes out his headphones. Maybe if he listens to music, his _former_ friend will get the hint. They have over forty minutes on the road until they’re back in Riverdale, and Archie doesn’t want to spend the whole time dodging Reggie’s half-assed attempts at a _rekindling_ of sorts.

He puts one earbud in place and flicks through his playlists on Spotify to find something that suits his mood — weirded out, kinda disappointed, but still chill — when he notices some movement in his peripheral vision. Archie glances up to see Veronica standing in the aisle next to Reggie’s seat. He thinks back to the party, to how Reggie called him _whipped_ , and tries to control the expression on his face when he looks at her. “Excuse me, Reginald. Would you swap seats with me for a moment?”

“Wh—” Reggie starts, in that bad-mannered way of his, but then he breathes out and shrugs, begrudgingly getting up. Archie watches as Reggie moves towards the front of the bus, but then his attention comes right back when Veronica plops down on the seat next to him.

“Hey,” she says, throwing her legs up and onto his lap.

Her blue skirt hikes up her bare thighs. There are little pompoms on her white sneakers as she rests her feet on his armrest. Archie feels the breath catching in his throat, heart skipping a beat.

“Hi,” he says, the earbud falling from his ear. He holds on to his phone, careful not to touch her legs or _look down_ at her legs. This isn’t Brad Jacobs’s couch.

Veronica rests her hands on her knees and gives him a cheesy grin. Archie frowns. All evening they had exchanged glances and smiles. She kissed his cheek before the match. She even blew him a _good luck_ kiss that he’d seen her blow to Chuck before, during other games. Chuck always pretended to catch the kiss in the air with his hand, and Archie always thought it was _stupid_.

Her grin gets bigger, for some reason. Archie finds himself laughing — count on Veronica to get him disconcerted and then completely comfortable in a matter of seconds. “Do you want to say something?” he asks, smiling at her, because he knows that she _does_ want to.

“The game wasn’t that bad.” Her voice is slightly high-pitched. She scoots a little closer to him, and the back of her thighs touch his. Archie raises his eyebrows. “Okay, it was _really_ bad, but you were great. It’s not your fault that the other players were lousy.”

Archie laughs, wrapping the wire of his headphones around his phone, any will that he had about listening to music long gone. “I was kinda lousy too,” he admits, setting his phone aside. He ends up patting the pompom on her sneakers, making her giggle. “I’m just not a bad loser.”

She’s smiling when he glances over at her. “You’re a _good loser_ , then?” she teases. Archie chuckles, and somehow decides that if he rests one hand on her ankle, it won’t be a big deal.

It ends up being _such_ a bad idea. Her skin is _so_ soft. His thumb moves alone, as much as his brain tells it to stop moving, and he ends up rubbing her skin, hand going up a little on her leg. Archie parts his lips to let a breath he didn’t even know he was holding come out, and he watches, completely mesmerized, as her tongue comes out to quickly wet her lips in a gesture that’s most likely innocent.

“If it’s any consolation, you were the hottest player on that field,” she says a sultry, playful way, touching his chin briefly with her index finger. Archie’s blood starts running a bit too fast through his veins, and he _commands_ his hand to stop going up her leg. It takes a Herculean effort — and it works — but he doesn’t possess any strength to _remove_ his hand. “I mean, the captain from the other team was _fine_ as well, but…”

“Oh.” Archie’s really grateful for her to get back to their usual banter. It snaps him out of that _aura_ that was starting to form around him, from that magnetic field that he forced himself to avoid for such a long time, but that still gets him every once in a while. “Is that how it is?” He squeezes her calf.

Veronica shrugs as she giggles.

Archie laughs. “Well, I guess that’s fair. But just so you know, you were the _only_ cheerleader for me on the field tonight,” he says in his best voice, winking at her even though he’s sure his cheeks and ears are turning red with the obvious flirtation. He says it only to annoy her, but it’s just a half-joke — he could obviously recognize all the pretty girls on the cheerleading squads, but Ronnie was _by far_ the most beautiful one in his eyes. She always has been.

Veronica seems impressed when she raises her eyebrows. He looks down, because he knows that if he stares at her he’ll just want to kiss her, and it’s probably better if they don’t. Archie reaches for his phone again, just so he _forces_ his hands away from her, and is unwrapping his headphones when Veronica takes her legs off of his lap and the phone out of his hand.

“You know,” she starts, looking at him through thick lashes. Archie’s smile disappears from his face when he realizes she’s so near. “Sometimes, you say _just_ the right thing.”

Archie looks at her eyes and then down at her lips. Veronica does the same, giving him a tiny, tiny smile, and his stomach tightens. So much for trying to not want to kiss her.

He frowns when he realizes that _she_ is leaning in, her eyes slowly closing. Archie suddenly has trouble swallowing, his heartbeats quickening. He closes his eyes too when her face is just an inch away, and then her lips are on his, so gentle, the tips of their noses bumping.

Archie takes a deep breath, feeling her bottom lip between his, as she nibbles on his top lip. He’s not sure which force makes him stand still as she presses her mouth more firmly against his — in his mind, it’s a mixture of _blank,_ blood running, and random images of what he _could_ do if this was real.

He could cup her face, bring her body close to his until she was on top of him, grab her hair between his hands. He could slide his tongue against hers, rhythm and heartbeats in sync. He could put his hands under that blue skirt, feel _more_ of her soft skin under his fingertips.

Just the thought of it petrifies him, for some reason, and all he can do is crease his eyebrows and _feel_. Feel her lips against his, feel as she breathes in and reaches out a hand to touch his face, all the way back to his ear and the back of his head, feel how the proximity leaves him covered with goosebumps. He can’t help but sigh when the tip of her tongue parts his lips, briefly searching for his tongue before going back to her own mouth. He feels her from head to toe, a heat growing in his lower abdomen.

Ronnie smiles with her lips against his when she pulls back, as slowly as she leaned in. He just watches as she presses her lips together in one fine line, unable to _move_ for a second. He wasn’t expecting _that kiss_ in a bus full of their peers, but well, that’s all he should’ve expected.

Archie’s breathing is erratic, his face a hot mess. Veronica doesn’t really seem to notice it — she bites on her lower lip and looks down, at his phone in her hand, the headphone wires tangled around her fingers. “What were you going to listen to?” she asks, glancing over at him, and he _envies_ how she can just _act normal_ after kissing him. _Like that_.

Archie runs a hand down his face, shifting on the seat a little. “Anything to shut Reggie up,” he says. She wakes up his phone. The lockscreen picture is one of the selfies they took together on the train down to New York City, the sun streaming and making their eyes shine in different tones of brown. They chose it together earlier in the week, when Archie was so sure everything between them hadn’t changed at all. 

She laughs quietly. “That’s my favorite song, too,” she jokes, handing him the phone and one of the earbuds, placing the other in her ear.

 

 

 

 

 

Since they lost the game, no one from the team feels like going to Pop’s when they’re back in Riverdale. Archie is glad — his desire to have a milkshake with Betty and, possibly, Jughead, is long gone, lost between the notes of the random playlist he listened to with Ronnie, her body too warm and pressed to his side. He chose an instrumental one because he somehow _knew_ that he would be damned if that moment had an actual soundtrack to it.

When they hop off the bus, Hermione is there to pick Veronica up. Archie ends up in the backseat of their town car, Ronnie’s hand resting so comfortably on his knee and making him quite _uncomfortable_. That’s when he learns that Veronica will be away for the weekend — Hermione’s taking her for a spa trip in Saratoga Springs, a gift for being her _lovely daughter and best friend._

Something about the way Veronica lifts up her eyebrow when Archie looks over at her makes him think that this gift is some sort of _apology_ for Hermione going off about the brunch earlier in the week, but it’s only a guess.

When they pull over in front of his house, Archie kisses Veronica’s cheek — it wouldn’t be _right_ to kiss her on the lips in front of her mother, not when he can still feel Veronica’s mouth on him like she had branded him with fire — and tells her to have fun.

It’s a weird, bittersweet feeling, to watch them drive away after Ronnie says she’ll text when they get there. He’d probably have plans with her this weekend, watching one of the movies in their contract or just hanging out, but now she’s whisked away.

Archie supposes he should get used to it, since it’s bound to happen any day, now.

His dad isn’t home. Archie feeds Vegas and sits on the couch for a while, but he feels _stuffed_ in his clothes, too warm and getting even warmer. He can’t stop thinking about Veronica, her bare legs, the softness of her skin under his palm, or how her tongue touched his so quickly, just a tease, just a reminder of what it could’ve been.

He wants to be back on Brad Jacob’s couch. He wants to be inside that closet again, and _not_ hold back. 

 _Damn._ He’s been in this place before, completely turned on and helpless, straining against his pants, and he knows there’s only one solution to it. Blowing out a defeated breath, he walks up to his bathroom and locks the door just in case.

 

 

 

 

 

It turns out that _giving in_ to what his body wanted from him — even if just once and quickly and mumbling her name only inside his mind, not aloud — actually helps.

Archie spends the rest of his weekend _fine_ , working out and playing video games without a worry on his mind. Veronica texts him only twice, to say that she is going to have a _digital detox_ too, and it doesn’t even bother him. He grabs a bite with Kevin and Moose on Saturday night and doesn’t even miss her.

(Only when the _Pretty Woman_ song comes in the jukebox, but just a little bit.)

When Monday comes, it’s his turn to bring coffee. He waits for Veronica in the courtyard as he usually does, headphones on even though he’s listening to nothing, two cups set in front of him.

Now that the sun is officially out and the leaves on the trees are greener and flowers are blossoming, more students spend their time out in the courtyard, sitting on the grass and basking under the warmth. The buzzing bees are mating — kinda like everyone else, which might explain recent behaviors. From where he is, Archie can see Cheryl and Heather curled up together sharing soft kisses, Kevin laughing about something Moose just said, and Chuck and Josie holding each other’s hands, a bashful smile on her face.

Archie’s vision is interrupted when _someone_ places two warm, tiny hands over his eyes. He smiles almost automatically, able to recognize her perfume and the tickling of her hair against his neck, silently asking him to _guess who_. _Okay_ , he did miss her.

“Hmm,” he says, bringing his hands up over her hands, pretending he has no idea who’s behind him. He touches her wrists, over the metal watch she normally wears on her left one, and places his hands a bit higher until he’s touching her face. “Wow, _Cheryl Blossom_ , is that you?” he asks with a purposely over-excited voice.

He anticipates the smack on his arm when Veronica uncovers his eyes. “Jerk,” she hisses in faux annoyance. Archie laughs. He’s so _fine_ that he thinks about saying something else, something playful like _do you think I would mistake the fake-love of my life_ , but when Veronica sits next to him and he actually _looks_ at her for the first time since Friday night, he realizes that he can’t.

He can’t joke about this. He can’t — _fuck,_ he should have never joked about it.

She’s the same girl from Times Square, the same big, bright brown eyes and the same smile, always a bit teasing, softening for him sometimes. She’s the same girl who cried in his arms, afraid that she wasn’t enough; the same girl who walked into a diner _twice_ and took his breath away.

She _takes_ his breath away. He feels the air being sucked out of his lungs as his laughter and his smile fades, the warmth being replaced by abrupt agony. “Hey,” he manages to say amidst the crushing wave of his realization.

“Hey, Archiekins,” she smiles and gives him the usual _hello_ kiss. Archie isn’t sure if her lips linger a bit longer than usual, or if he’s just _stunned_ , but he can feel it, the buttery texture of her rosy lipstick, her skin under the tip of his nose. When she pulls away, he has the urge to _touch_ his mouth. “Is this still hot?” she asks, taking her coffee, today marked with a simple _Veronica_ since the barista wasn’t in such a good mood.

Archie watches her take a sip and look fairly pleased with the beverage’s temperature. _Oh, fuck_ , he thinks, not knowing what to do with his face for a moment. _Fuck, fuck, fuck._

“So, this place my mom took me? Quite nice, but you should’ve _seen_ the other guests.”

Veronica places one hand on top of his as she starts going on about some guy who she thinks was pretending to be a monk. Archie can’t _not_ hold her hand back — she would be aware that something’s up, and the last thing he needs right now is for her to realize the same things that he just did.

He wants her to let go of his hand. He also wants her to hold it for as long as possible. 

_Fuck._

 

 

 

 

 

The sun is out, the leaves are greener, the flowers are blossoming, and Archie is _losing it_.

He tries, for the life of him, to talk himself out of it: he’s not in love with Veronica — she’s beautiful. She smells great, and he’s just a _guy_ , honestly. He’s not in love with Veronica — he’s just _getting used_ to being around her. He’s not in love with Veronica — he’s just very into brunettes.

But when she sits next to him during lunch or surprises him by his locker, every single excuse his brain makes up just makes him sound and feel more and more stupid. He can’t get around that.

He only notices it now, but he thinks about her all the time. It’s like he’s back in sophomore year, trying with all his might to get it together and feeling it slip through his fingers like sand. And, the worst part is, back then he didn’t even _know_ her. He was captivated, sure, and kissing her in that closet was something else, but he didn’t know anything about her. He didn’t know everything that made her who she is, so fierce, elegant, smart, and brave. He didn’t know all the peculiar ways she could smile or laugh or the name of her perfume; he hadn’t been into her room or into her life.

Now, he has. And he doesn’t know how to shove it down, how to bury it. There are only two options: _tell her_ that, like an idiot, he got burned while playing with fire, or end it.

Veronica comes up to him the next morning when he’s in the hallway between classes. He managed to dodge her before first period, but now it seems impossible — she’s excited, a huge smile on her face and some sort of flyer in her hand. “Archiekins! You won’t believe it!”

“I won’t?” Archie asks, a soft smile on his lips, his insides turning to mush. She doesn’t seem to notice that his eyes are weary from the sleepless night.

“They’re playing _Casablanca_ at the drive-in tonight!” Veronica says, showing him the flyer. “It’s _perfect._ You promised me we’d watch it, remember?”

“Yeah. I know.”

“So, what do you say?” Veronica takes a step towards him. There are a lot of people around them, but all he can see is a blur in his peripheral vision when she wraps her arms around his neck. Archie carefully places a hand on her waist, feeling that touch throughout his entire body. “I know it’s a school night, but do we have a fake-date? Did you fix your sexy wheels?” She raises one of her eyebrows.

He almost chuckles. “No, not yet.”

She purses her lips, a bit disappointed. “Well, maybe your dad’s truck? I mean, Smithers _could_ drive us but I don’t think people take drivers to these things.”

This time, he does chuckle, his throat tightening. It feels impossible to say no to her. “I’ll ask my dad.” 

 

 

 

 

 

It feels inevitable to take Veronica out: the teachers don’t assign any homework, there are no sights of rain, and his dad isn’t going to use the truck. The universe seems to be conspiring, and Archie has no strength to fight against it.

He puts his letterman jacket on top of the polo shirt Veronica bought him in New York, a day that feels like it happened a million years ago. His father’s truck doesn’t have an option for Bluetooth, so Archie just presses play for whatever CD Fred had been listening to. He recognizes the 70’s mix when Cat Stevens starts the first chords for _Wild World._

Ronnie is waiting for him in front of the Pembrooke, as beautiful as ever. She’s wearing a purple dress, as simple as it’d get, a thin brown leather belt around her waist and a jacket on top. She smiles when she sees him through the car’s window, and Archie is painfully conscious of his heart inside his chest.

As soon as they cross the train tracks, the change of scenery to the Southside is blatant: the streets are emptier, the cars parked are dustier, and the buildings are older. Even the trees look different, their leaves more yellow. The Twilight Drive-In, however, is a place that Archie has been more than a few times with his friends, and even with Val, to catch movie marathons in the summer. It is one of those staple locations from his hometown, something that Archie _will_ miss if he leaves one day.

The place is quite busy for a Tuesday, but Archie manages to find a good spot to park. Apparently, the exhibition of Casablanca is opening the spring season. Veronica tells him this once he helps her up onto the truck’s tailgate and they sit together, facing the big screen.

Fred reminded him to take some blankets that they could sit on and in case it got chilly. Veronica immediately covers her legs with one of them, snuggling against Archie’s side, a bag of popcorn in hand. It would be a nice date, if it wasn’t a _fake_ one. It reminds him of before they started this mess, going out with her in the Bijou. She was so distant from him, back then, almost out of reach. Just a girl that he once had a crush on.

She’s not distant now. Archie can feel her against him, their legs touching under the blanket, her shoulder pressed to his arm. If he wanted, he could lift that arm and wrap it around her, like other couples all over the parking lot.

“There’s something about black and white movies,” she muses when the movie starts in that weird way all old movies start, some instrumental music and long credits that could’ve been done by anyone with a computer, nowadays. Archie turns his head to look at her and the way the screen reflects on her face. “No special effects, no distractions… It’s just the script and the emotion.”

Archie had watched some old films with Betty and Jughead, who were also enthusiasts of pioneer cinema. Just like reading, that was just another taste his best friends had in common that Archie didn’t share. The lack of color and action honestly used to bore him, but when Veronica puts it like this, he thinks he kinda gets it. Like a song without effects or autotune — those songs in which not much except for the lyrics is important.

The narrator starts telling some tale about the second world war. Veronica doesn’t have the same annoying habit Jughead had, of explaining everything to Archie as the movie plays, and for that he’s grateful. His attention span for movies has never been the greatest, but the plot soon catches his attention — Archie expected it to be solely a romantic story, but it turns out to be a lot more than that.

Midway through the movie, there’s a knot tied inside Archie’s throat. The unfolding of Rick Blaine and Ilsa Lund’s love story is surprising and quite heartbreaking. At some point, while the pianist is playing a song that Archie remembers from the Frank Sinatra Collection in his garage, he recognizes the words Veronica said to him when she walked into Jill’s the day after she found out he wrote a love song about her.

 _Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks right into mine_.

She must remember that moment too, because when Rick says it with the bitterest tone in his voice, he can feel Veronica giggle next to him. She links her arm with his, and cuddles closer, resting her head on his shoulder.

All the muscles in his body hurt when his heart stiffens. He doesn’t know if she understands the heaviness of it all. It isn't just a joke they shared at Jill’s. It _wasn’t_. She walked right into his life and _messed it all up_. Did she even know that? Of all the diners in all the towns in all the world, she walked right into Pop’s on that last day of August.

Veronica is quietly singing along to the piano tune, _“The fundamental things apply, as time goes by…”_. She always had a pretty voice, as he remembers from the Variety Show during sophomore year, but like this, singing next to him in a way that only him can hear, she sounds almost like an angel.

He turns his face a so his nose is on her hair, on the side of her head. Archie closes his eyes for a moment, careful not to breathe in too deeply, so she won’t notice that he’s trying as hard as he can to hold onto her.

 

 

 

 

 

Archie feels cheated by the movie, once it’s over. He keeps staring at the screen even after the ending credits.

When he looks over at Veronica, she has tears tracks on her face, just as she did after _How to Train a Dragon_. She laughs when she catches the anguished look on his face, drying her cheeks. “It always gets me, okay?”

“This movie is _horrible_ ,” Archie blurts out with a breath. He couldn’t even _cry_ , because it was _so_ painful that it might have made him numb. “I mean, it’s a great movie, but _why_ would you watch this a thousand times when you _know_ they’re not going to end up together? It’s torture.”

Veronica stops laughing when he says that. Her smile fades, and she shrugs, her whole expression turning a bit sadder than before. “They couldn’t end up together. It would be too hard for them,” she says, like she has given it a lot thought. Archie wants to argue that it _wouldn’t_ , but Veronica seems like she has more to say. “Rick was the wrong man for her, even though he gave her all the right feelings.”

They look at each other. She has moved from his side, and there’s now a solid foot of space between them. Archie absorbs what she just said — the wrong person who gives you all the right feelings. He knows Veronica doesn’t mean anything by it, knows she’s just trying to apply her practical logic to the movie and soothe his disappointment, but the whole thing just speaks to his soul. If he’s starting to be really honest, that’s always how it felt with her, from the very beginning. Veronica made him feel things he never thought were humanly possible, but it was never _right_.

The cars around them start to turn on their engines, but they keep looking at each other, talking silently with their eyes. Archie wonders what would happen if he kissed her right now. There’s no one watching, no one taking pictures. He wonders what she would think if he held her face in his hands and just did it, pressing onto her mouth, thumbs stroking her soft skin.

He isn’t brave enough, and she breaks eye contact first. “We should get going. I don’t want your dad to be upset again because of me.”

“Yeah,” Archie clears his throat. “Sure. Let me help you,” he says and proceeds to climb out of the truck. He holds her by the waist to help her down.

“Pretty Woman has a happier ending. I swear,” Veronica says once they’re on the ground, sounding a little apologetic. Archie smiles with tenderness, even though everything is messy inside of him.

But it’s not _so_ messy. There's still only two options: tell her or end it.

 

 

 

 

 

He’s distracted during practice, the next day, and Coach Clayton benches him the last few minutes. It’s annoying, but it brings Archie to the conclusion that he _needs_ to decide what he’s going to do, and fast.

Archie showers after everyone else, since the coach asks what happened and gives him advice after practice. Once he’s done, he’s about to leave the locker room and text Veronica, when the Fates intervene, as they usually do.

Veronica is right outside, in the hallway. She has her arms crossed, and she doesn’t see him, because she’s actually looking at someone else.

_Chuck._

Archie quietly takes a step back into the locker room, his heartbeat thumping at the bottom of his throat. He doesn’t mean to overhear their conversation, but he also _can’t_ walk out right in front of them and interrupt it. And if he moves or closes the door completely, it will catch their attention.

“—I’ve been _trying_ to tell you, V. But you’re… with Andrews, all the time, and I can’t—”

Archie holds his breath when he hears Veronica scoffing. “Oh, _when_ exactly did you try to tell me, Chuck? Before or after you were shoving your tongue down _my friend’s_ throat?”

“ _You_ dumped _me_ , V. And besides, weren’t you with Andrews like, a day later?”

There’s a beat of silence. Archie can almost hear Veronica swallowing. “That’s… _different_ ,”  she says in a quiet voice.

Archie rests his forehead against the door, slowly letting the air out. _Different._ It didn’t change anything, if they were together as fast as Chuck and Josie, because they aren't real.

He hears Chuck sigh, the same patient sigh he gives the team from time to time, and the tone of his voice is really different when he speaks again, less accusative. “It doesn’t matter. Okay? So we both got into rebound relationships and got caught up in them. It’s okay. It happens. But it’s my last Spring Break trip and— Come on. ” Archie can hear the smile in Chuck’s voice, the way his words get more tender. He can _sense_ Veronica’s expression softening even if he can’t see it. “We were good together for such a long time. You were such an important part of it all. Can’t we just do this?”

Archie holds his breath again. He can hear himself inside his mind, _pleading_ that she says _no_. That she tells Chuck that she has a _boyfriend_ , that she has _him_ , that she remembers him. That she remembers everything they’ve been through and thinks that maybe _somehow_ having him help her move on from that past relationship made her _actually_ move on from it. He’s an idiot, and he should have never accepted to being with her —, but _he did_.

“I…” Veronica starts. The hesitation in her voice makes Archie close his eyes. It’s useless, the pleading. If she’s hesitating, it’s because she can’t say _no_. “I don’t know, Chuck.”

Carefully, Archie takes a step back and slowly closes the locker room door, so they won’t notice. He walks in further. He doesn’t want to listen anymore.

It’s all starting to make sense to him. Why Veronica would go along with a scheme like this, why she’d spend her time with someone like him. It wasn’t to prove to Chuck that she could move on as fast as he could — it was so she _didn’t_ move on. Archie was just her excuse, holding Chuck’s place for him as he realized this thing with Josie was just temporary.

And it’s okay. He wouldn’t hold it against Veronica; he isn't even mad at her. There is no reason to be. She made everything so clear, and he was the foolish one to let her slip into his mind again.

At least, now Archie’s options are down to one.

 

 

 

 

 

In the span of forty-eight hours, two things become very clear to Archie: that he is _not_ the first and only guy on Earth that ever got over Veronica Lodge, and that letting her go is a very, very hard thing to do.

He knows he has to. He spends the entire night thinking about it: he needs to be as brave as he was when he walked into this mess with his head up. But it’s just— she is a _part_ of his life now, a huge chunk of it, the first and the last person to text him every day, the little laugh echoing in his ear. How is he supposed to just _walk away_ from her? Even if she doesn't feel the same?

Overhearing her and Chuck talking and agreeing on _whatever_ , made him feel a little sick, but Archie can’t hold it against her. Everything inside of him that _hurts_ is _his_ fault, not Ronnie’s. It makes it worse that she doesn't _know_ about any of it, but it’s not like she promised him anything.

He allows himself just _a little bit more._ He brings them coffee, an order he’ll remember for the rest of his life. He kisses her _hello_ , his heart squeezing painfully. He sits next to her at that same table in the courtyard and asks questions about the book she’s reading now — _Cien Años de Soledad,_ she tells him in Spanish, smiling the way she always does when he seems interested in what she’s reading. He watches as she reads and drinks coffee, quiet and comfortable. He holds her hand when they walk to class, knowing that when she lets go, he’ll probably not hold it again.

Archie sees Veronica again during lunch break. She’s beautifully oblivious, sitting next to him in the cafeteria, stealing his chips and listening to some tale Ginger is telling them. Archie wishes he could be oblivious too. That he didn’t _know_ about her and Chuck and that they could keep pretending forever.

The bell rings to announce lunch is ending. Archie takes a deep breath as he follows her to her locker, and he holds onto his backpack straps, waiting for her to get the books she’ll need for her afternoon classes.

“Ronnie,” he starts. It’s a path of no return. She turns around, looking up at him with a smile, but it half-fades when she catches the look on his face. “Can we talk?”

Veronica frowns. “Yeah. Is everything okay?” she asks, genuinely concerned, closing her locker door.

Archie looks around. The hallways are starting to empty, and he doesn’t think that anyone left is going to pry into their conversation. There’s nothing else to do. “Yeah,” he lies, and Veronica narrows her eyes. “I mean—” he sighs. It’s better if he just says it. “I don’t think we should be doing this anymore.”

“What?” she asks almost immediately, taken aback. The sheer disbelief on her face makes him swallow hard. “Wh— what are you talking about?”

“I— I don’t think either one of us thought this would last so long. But it’s been months now,” he says, jittery, some invisible hand squeezing his heart. “Betty and I are fine. You showed Chuck that you can move on as fast as you want. I— we both got what we wanted out of it, so there’s no need to keep it going.”

Veronica holds her books against her chest, like she’s putting on some armor. Her eyes are shining, but Archie doesn’t think it’s from tears. She’s _angry_. “Oh. No, no, no,” she says, visibly _livid_ even if she keeps her voice down, her face getting a little redder than usual. “I can’t _believe_ you are trying to… _fake_ -break up with me _one day_ before the dance. And before the trip! That’s in the contract!”

Archie bites the inside of his lip. He had _honestly_ forgotten about that. But it doesn’t help, _at all_. How could he go to the dance as her date, knowing that everything is just another stunt? How could he spend a goddamn _week_ with her in Cape Cod knowing that she’d probably just dump him as soon as they got there, and he’d take Chuck’s place in Reggie’s Airbnb while Chuck would enjoy the room with an ocean view? No. He can’t be a witness to that reunion. He can’t be Rick Blaine, telling Ilsa to go with her husband. He’d rather stay in Riverdale, so when Chuck and Veronica come back from the trip magically together, it will be like everything else was just something he dreamed up.

“Yeah but only if we’re still together,” his voice comes out smaller.

“We _are_ still together!” she says, louder. There’s more than anger to her voice, suddenly, maybe even _hurt_. Archie feels his eyebrows creasing. She looks quickly to the side, blowing out a frustrated breath. “I paid for the hotel. I’m not going to cancel anything. I don’t know why you’re trying to pull out _now_ , but you’re going to figure it out,” she says, decided. She turns to her locker again, opening it in a forceful way, shoving books back in and taking a planner out.

“Ronnie, come on. It makes _no sen_ —”

She shoves a piece of paper against his chest. “Take the fucking ticket. You _better_ be at this dance right on time, Andrews, or I swear that it _will_ be over. For _real._ ”

Archie opens his mouth to protest, but it’s useless. Veronica slams her locker shut, and walks away before he can say anything else.

He’s left in the empty hallway like an idiot, with the ticket for the Spring Dance in his hand. He should’ve trusted his guts — he knew from the very beginning that this girl was only going to break his heart.

 

 

 

 

_tbc_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ay, the sadness :( we all know that this needed to happen and that it would get worse before it gets better, so I'm really sorry for making y'all sad on this cloudy Sunday. I hope the rest of the chapter pays off, anyway! Also, before you get REALLY MAD at Chuck or Veronica, remember that some things might not be what they seem lol I would never make Chuck an entire douchebag because I love him.
> 
> Honestly, this chapter was SO hard to write and such a pain. I had to delete two drafts before this one, whole 5K words each. I struggled a lot with insecurity and a writer's block. I *think* I might have overcome it but I really would appreciate some feedback and insight. Thanks to all of you that have patiently waited!
> 
> There are some loose ends besides what actually *needs* to happen, so I decided this fic will now have seven chapters instead of six, just so we can end it neatly. We are almost there, though! Thank you for being patient and on this journey with me. Special thanks, as usual, to my girls Nic (especially because she endured all my break downs LOL) and AK.
> 
> And as much as I struggled, the playlist for this chapter is bomb!
> 
>   * No Vacancy - Nightly (song at the beginning, and I LOVE IT SO MUCH) 
>   * Paris In The Rain - LAUV (to keep with the LAUV theme)
>   * Wild World - Cat Stevens (some 70's greatness)
>   * As Time Goes By - Frank Sinatra (Casablanca theme)
>   * Brooklyn - Patrick Droney
> 



	6. Chapter 6

_but if you never shoot  
you'll never know_

 

::  
::  
::

 

After school lets out, Archie drags himself to the gym, hoping that some weightlifting will take his mind off what happened earlier in the hallway. He doesn't really know if he has the right to be upset, but _he is_ : she _knew_ their agreement made no sense any more, so why didn’t she want him to get out? Did she _really_ still need him to make Chuck jealous? Archie doesn’t think so, if what happened outside the locker room was any indication.

When Archie reaches the weight room, he stops when he sees that _Cheryl Blossom_ is just outside, leaning against a wall, examining her red nails. He frowns, wondering if she’s waiting for Jason, or something, when she heaves out an annoyed breath, noticing him.

“Archibald,” she says. It sounds more like a warning than a greet.

“Cheryl.” Archie looks behind him and then around. “What are you doing here?”

She sighs, seemingly annoyed again, and then straightens herself, taking a step towards him. “I’m here to ask, who _the hell_ you think you are?”

Archie's frown deepens. He’s not completely _sure_ of what he did to upset Cheryl so much that she had to go out of her way to come down to the weight room, but he has an _idea_. “Uh…”

Cheryl lifts up a hand, signaling for him to stop talking. “Veronica is missing cheer practice, _and_ she canceled the mani-pedis I had booked for us at Chez Salon. The _Spring Dance_ mani-pedis. If that doesn’t scream _boyfriend being an asshole_ , I don’t know what else does.”

“It’s kinda none of your business, Cheryl,” Archie breathes out. He’s already tired and _very_ sad. He doesn’t need Cheryl interfering.

“You still haven’t gotten it,” she gives him a tight-lipped smile, taking yet another step in his direction. Cheryl is tall enough that, with heels on, they almost stand face to face. “ _Everything_ is my business. Especially if it involves _a fuckboy_ like you hurting _my_ best friend and ruining _my_ last Spring Dance and _my_ spring break trip. So, you better spill or I swear—”

Archie makes a face. He knows that this is just Cheryl’s crazy way of talking to people like she owns everything and everyone around her, but it isn’t _okay_. He’s fed up — everything about his encounter with Veronica _hurts_ , and he’s not going to stand here and take threats. Besides, what can he even tell her? _I tried to fake-break-up with my fake-girlfriend because I’m having real feelings, and she didn’t accept it because she, somehow, still needs me to drag this out?_ Certainly not.

“I’m not going to _spill_ anything, Cheryl,” he says, cranky. “If you _really_ need to know, why don’t you ask Veronica what happened, since she’s your best friend? I don’t owe you anything.”

Cheryl smiles. It’s her signature icy, dangerously red smile, the one that moves only her lips and no other muscles on her face. “I have to say I’m impressed that you’re finally trying to grow some balls, but I’m also very disappointed. You _do_ owe me something. Or, have you forgotten that you owe me a favor for keeping that horrendous video under wraps?”

Archie runs both his hands through his hair. He had, in fact, forgotten. The songs seem so _small_ next to what he is experiencing _now_. Besides, does it really matter? His thing with Veronica is already ruined, and even if it wasn’t, she knew about Cheryl’s song. Sure, he’d have to endure a lot of teasing and humiliation — and he wasn’t looking forward to _that_ — but then again— “What about it?” He exhales, annoyed.

“The way I see it, it’s quite simple. You have two options here. You either _fix_ this mess with Veronica, or I’ll play that video during the dance.” She raises both eyebrows. “I’m sure it will become quite the hit when we get to Cape Cod.”

Archie scratches the back of his neck. He doesn’t have any power to fight it, not today. He shouldn’t have even come to the weight room — he should’ve gone home and laid down to ruminate over the poor decision making that led him to this place. “Do whatever you want, Cheryl.”

Cheryl takes a deep breath and then _smacks him_ on the side of his head. It doesn’t hurt, but the abruptness of the hit startles him, making him automatically bring a hand to his head, eyes widening. “ _Fix this_.” She says and then passes by him with a bump of her shoulder.

Archie turns and watches her stomp down the hallway. He really should have known better than to start making deals with the devil.

 

 

 

 

 

Archie manages to dodge his dad when he gets home. He plays the exhausted card and goes up to his room with a glass of milk and a protein bar instead of dinner. Which is fine, because he isn’t hungry, and he _really_ is exhausted.

Lying flat on his back, Archie avoids grabbing his phone until he doesn’t. He’s so _used_ to getting texts from Ronnie every evening, now, that when he sees that his screen is void of any notifications, it makes his heart tighten painfully. He needs to get used to it — to her silence. To _not having her_ anymore.

He supposes he could just _give up_ on _fake-_ breaking up. Text her now, _fix it_ like Cheryl demanded, and then spend just a little more time with Veronica even with Chuck’s ghost hovering over them. But he already tried to end it and she _already_ got upset because he tried to break their agreement, so it probably wouldn’t be the same.

Whatever they had, even if it wasn’t real, was perfect. And now, it's ruined.

 

 

 

 

 

When Friday comes, Archie only has classes in the morning, none of which he shares with Ronnie. His only task is to get through the day, hopefully avoiding both Cheryl’s mortifying glances and possibly running into Veronica. He wishes he had the courage to walk up to her and say that _no_ , he _isn’t_ going to the dance even if it upsets her and ruins their _friendship_ because he can’t be her friend, anyways.

He can’t pay attention during any of his classes, but it doesn’t seem like anyone notices — everyone at school, even the teachers, is in a sort of _mood_ , buzzing with expectation given the dance later and, most importantly, the break coming right after. All throughout the day, he spots Betty in the hallways, carrying decorations and being bossed around by Heather Higgs, since both are in school council, always organizing the dances.

“We wanted glitter balls, not _balls made of glitter_.” He’s at his locker when he overhears Heather complaining, and Betty looks at him over Heather’s shoulder, shrugging and widening her eyes. It’s the only smile Archie manages to crack that morning.

Besides Cheryl, apparently, no one noticed that he and Veronica aren’t together anymore (aside from the technicalities), which is a good thing. He wouldn’t be able to answer any questions.

Archie almost comes back home unscathed, succeeding on getting through the longest four periods of his life, when he ends up, somehow, lowering his guard and _almost_ walking into Veronica before leaving. He’s about to turn the corner to go down the hall and get his things, but he stops when he sees her by her locker, the exact same place where she left him the day before.

He parts his lips, letting some air out. She’ll always be the most beautiful girl he’s ever seen. She’ll always manage to suck the air right from his lungs whenever he looks at her. Little snippets of their time “together” come back to his mind, almost like a flashback.

Archie watches as Veronica takes a deep breath and turns around to go down the hallway, wavy hair bouncing, hips swinging as usual. She was out of reach for so long, and now…

It’s just a matter of remembering how it was, to spend endless days and nights trying to get over her, and actually succeed, this time.

 

 

 

 

In the afternoon, Archie is sitting on a stool at the kitchen, guitar on his lap, notebook open on the counter. He’s softly strumming some chords, stopping every now and then to write down a note or a word. He’s not sure if trying to compose is the best thing to do right now, but at least it helps to quiet the mess inside of him.

The clock on the kitchen wall tells him that the Spring Dance will start in only an hour. He’s sure that, soon enough, Jason Blossom will stop his car so he can pick-up Polly and, maybe, Betty and Jughead. That is if Jug doesn’t decide to take Betty on his motorcycle, something that would be quite funny to witness.

Archie is still wearing the same clothes he wore to school this morning. His phone is silent, but he’s sure that soon enough, when he doesn’t show up at the dance and Cheryl decides to leak his video, his phone will be buzzing with notifications from his colleagues, mocking him. Maybe Veronica will send him a final goodbye text. He’s prepared for it. He accepted that it’s going to be like this.

There’s movement at the front door, signaling that his dad is home, and Vegas gets up from his comfortable position, curled up at Archie’s feet, and trots to the door. Archie closes the notebook when the door opens — it’s better if his dad doesn’t see him writing.

“Arch, hey,” Fred greets as he dodges Vegas running around his legs. Archie looks up to see his dad walking in, carrying some bags and a plastic garment bag. “I picked up your suit and shirt from the dry cleaning. Figured it would be better if you didn’t have a mustard stain on y– Woah,” Fred stops talking when he gets closer to Archie and sees the beaten look on his face. “Are you okay, son?”

Archie takes a deep breath. He’s quite aware that he looks like shit — he hasn’t slept properly in two days, and he just— _honestly_ — feels like crying. Setting his guitar down, he shakes his head. “Thanks for the effort, dad. But I’m not going to the dance anymore.”

Fred wrinkles his forehead, both confused and surprised. Archie looks down, feeling somewhat stripped under his father’s gaze. There’s a moment of silence, and then Fred pulls over a stool to sit on, placing the suit and all the other bags on the counter. “Are you going to tell me what happened, or do I have to interrogate you until you do?”

Archie manages to smile softly, but it quickly fades. “Veronica and I…” he starts. He’s not sure which words to use — it seems wrong that he has decided he’s doing this whether she is or isn’t on board, and it seems even more wrong to tell anyone about it before they have a final conversation. Like saying it aloud will make it _real_. “We broke up. So, I don’t see any reason for me to go.”

Fred creases his eyebrows. There’s another beat of silence while he’s absorbing what Archie just said. “Did she break up with you?” he asks. Archie sets his guitar against the counter and shakes his head, unable to look up at his dad. “And why would you break up with her? Don’t you love her?”

He fumbles with his hands, eyes filling up. Maybe two weeks ago, his answer wouldn’t be the same. Maybe he’d try to deny it or hide it, but he’s done with lying to his father. He’s done with _lying_. It’s enough. He doesn’t feel like telling the whole truth about their fake relationship, but at least he can say something honest for the first time in a long time. “I do, but I don’t think she feels the same way about me.”

“I see. So, that’s why you decided to end things before she could? Spare yourself some heartbreak?” Archie looks up because he can feel his dad’s soft smile in the tone of his voice. He nods. “And let me guess, you didn’t really _ask_ her how she felt?”

It’s quite impressive. “How do you know that?”

Fred chuckles. “Please. I’ve been around for a while, now.” He shakes his head, still laughing, and moves his stool a bit closer to Archie. His face twists into that expression he always wears whenever they’re about to have a _Serious Talk_. “Sometimes, with love, son, things are complicated. It’s both a blessing and a curse. A blessing because we feel… _happy_ and accomplished. Because making someone we love smile is something that compares to nothing else,” he says. Archie feels Fred’s words sinking in. “And a curse, because it makes us so vulnerable. We’re giving out a piece of us and we know that we might never get that back. That’s pretty scary.”

Archie clenches his jaw, looking down again. Fred places a hand on his shoulder, to catch his attention before he continues to speak.

“So, maybe Veronica doesn’t feel the same. Maybe if you poured your heart out, she’d dump you, and you’d be left alone without that piece of you,” he says, watching as Archie tries to swallow the lump in his throat. “Even if that’s the case, it might be worth it for you to tell her how you feel. Right now, being scared that you’re gonna get your heart broken, you’re _here_. Heartbroken. But if you put on this suit and go to the dance, there’s a chance that you’re going to end this night with the girl you love.”

He squeezes Archie’s shoulder and then removes this hand, reaching for one of the bags he brought. “Marcus had to go to CVS today, and I asked him to print these out for you.” Fred places a big, brown envelope in front of Archie. “Maybe it will help you make your decision.”

Fred gives him two pats on the back before getting up and leaving Archie at the kitchen, a low whistle catching Vegas's attention, causing the dog to follow him upstairs. Archie reaches out for the brown envelope, hesitating as he gathers the courage to open it.

His heart starts beating faster. It’s the pictures from the disposable camera, the one she mocked him for buying in New York. Archie’s eyes well up again. It’s all Veronica. And she’s _beaming_.

Archie sees her smiling at the _not-so-famous_ Bethesda Fountain, smiling at a mirror as she tried on shoes, smiling in the line at Starbucks as they waited for their coffees. They’re _both_ smiling, holding each other, in the picture they took at the Brooklyn Bridge. Archie can’t help but feel his lips curling up too. It’s the only picture of him in the whole thing — the rest is all Ronnie, posing and laughing, surrounded by the lights in Times Square, shining brighter than them all.

Archie inhales deeply as he looks at her in the picture. The most beautiful girl he’s ever seen. It’s been _a day,_ and he’s already so lost without her. How is he going to do this? Missing her doesn't feel right. Ronnie made him feel everything he could only ever pretend to understand, and yes, he probably _could_ just play it safe, _stay put_ and carry on with his plan to finally get over her, but the truth is that he’ll probably spend his whole life trying.

The girl in New York wasn’t pretending. She wasn’t faking those smiles. And yes, maybe she _did_ want Chuck back, but nothing was stopping her from _being_ with Chuck. Besides, now that he comes to think about it, there were some moments when… Like the other day, on the bus? When she kissed him like no one else and made him _burn_? Or at the drive-in, when she leaned her head on his shoulder? There was no one watching, not really. She reached for him. She…

If there’s a chance that, even for the slightest minute, Ronnie felt a _third_ of what Archie feels for her… Then—

 

 

 

 

 

 

He runs down the stairs, adjusting his bow tie around his neck. “Okay, Dad,” Archie says, taking a quick glance at himself in the mirror that's hanging in the front hall. There’s not much more he can do to get his hair to look good — the wax doesn’t really set damp hair, but he doesn’t have that much _time_ to fix that red mess. “What’s my curfew today?”

Fred, who is sitting on the couch, turns to him with a curious expression that soon softens, like he’s somewhat proud of Archie for deciding what to do. “One is fine. Suit and tie look great,” he says and then sniffs a little, “but you went a little overboard with the cologne.”

Archie makes a face, bringing his sleeve to his nose, his cheeks suddenly warm. “Is it too much?!”

His dad chuckles. “It will fade by the time you get there, don’t worry. Are you picking Veronica up?”

Archie heaves out a breath, shaking his head. “The dance starts in five minutes. I’ll be late anyway. I guess I’ll just meet her there and hope for the best,” he confesses. Fred smiles, getting up and coming near him, giving his bow tie a final touch. “Thank you, dad. For everything.”

“I told you, son. My job here is to guide you,” Fred places both hands on his shoulders and takes a step back to examine the way he looks. The proud smile on his face makes Archie feel beyond his nerves, beyond his own expectations. If his dad thinks this is the right thing to do, it probably is.

“I— think you can lend me the truck for tonight?”

“The truck?” Fred frowns. “Why don’t you take the Firebird?”

Archie bites the inside of his cheek. Maybe, in this great wave of honesty, it’s time he confesses that his project to fix his grandpa’s car with Betty never went through. “Dad, I need to tell you—”

“Betty gave the keys back yesterday,” Fred interrupts, not really listening, going to the key hanger  next to the front door. Archie opens his mouth — the Donald Duck keychain that he was _sure_ , was in his drawer upstairs, is hanging there. _What…?_ “She showed me that it's up and running. You guys did a great job.” Fred gives him the keys, and Archie is speechless as his dad pats his arm. “Proud of you, kiddo.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the garage, Archie stands in awe next to the car that looks brand new. Everything seems to be fixed — the ice blue paint is perfectly shiny again, all of the windows have been restored, and even the white hood is back on, spotless. He really can’t believe it — the last time he had even _touched_ this car was a few weeks ago, the same day Veronica took him to Brad Jacobs’s party. How—

Archie runs his hand over the smooth blue metal and opens the door, shocked. The inside looks even better, beige leather smelling great, the panel completely restored. He sits in the driver seat, holding the steering wheel with disbelief, when something catches his attention. A red business card stuck to the gearshift.

Frowning, Archie gets the card. On one side, there’s a logo for Luxury Cars Jamboree, the Mantle family dealership. On the other side, with information about Marty Mantle, there’s also a note in unmistakable handwriting:

_Bro, I really am sorry for my actions. Hope you enjoy your car._

_\- RM_

Archie stares at the note, just amazed as when he stared at the car. _Reggie?_ Reggie fixed the Firebird? Reggie Mantle? How— Betty always said it would take a lot of time and work to get this car running, so— Did the Firebird really disappear from his garage and no one noticed? Was Reggie working in his house, undercover? What—

Confused, and very surprised, Archie sticks the key in the ignition and turns the car on. It _is_ working, the engine roaring perfectly. “Oh, wow,” Archie says under his breath. This is unreal. His grandpa’s car, his dad's most precious belonging. He shakes his head briefly. He sure as hell needs to run to the dance, but there _is_ something else he needs to do first.

 

 

 

 

 

After taking the car out of the garage, Archie walks next door, ringing the bell to the Cooper's house. He rubs his hands together, a bit nervous. After a couple of minutes, the door opens. It’s Mr. Cooper, already wearing pajamas even though it’s not even eight in the evening, and he frowns when he sees Archie at his door.

“Oh, hey there, Arch.” He glances at Archie up and down, taking in how dressed up he is.

“I’m here to talk to Betty, Mr. Cooper. Is she still home?”

“I’m not sure if it’s a good—”

“It’s okay, Dad” He can Betty’s voice from behind Hal. Archie frowns when he sees Betty — she has make-up on and her hair in an updo, but she’s wearing sweatpants and a t-shirt, almost like she was getting ready for the dance but gave up. Hal nods and throws Archie a glance before going inside the house, but Betty doesn’t invite him in. In fact, she’s the one who comes out. “You look good,” Betty says with a small, soft smile.

“Thanks,” Archie scratches the back of his head, “uh…” he takes the Mantle business card from the inside of his jacket. “Something tells me you have something to do with this.”

Betty’s smile grows bigger when she gets the card from Archie’s hand and reads the note on it. She closes the door behind her and gestures for them to sit on her porch, like they did the other Sunday. “Well, after a while, I realized that Reggie missed you a lot. He really regretted what he did and was looking for a way to make it up to you. I— I kinda gave him the tip. We talked to your dad about it but made him believe that you were involved too.” She makes an apologetic face, and Archie chuckles. “It’s professional care, so the car is great.”

Archie nods. He’s very much impressed that Betty and Reggie managed to get the car from the garage and the keys from his room, without him noticing. “So… Did Reggie tell you why we were in a fight?”

Betty nods. “Yeah, he told me he leaked your songs,” she says, not really looking at Archie for a moment. “Including…”

“Yeah,” Archie breathes out. “I— I feel like I owe you an explanation.” He glances over at Betty, and she looks at him too, waiting. “I wrote those songs about girls that I felt something for,” he starts, very quietly. “Girls who meant something to me, and I don’t know. I just felt that, whenever I wrote a song about them, it was a way of saying goodbye to my feelings. Or to my _imagination_ , I don’t know.”

“I see,” Betty holds her knees. “I think that, after what happened on sophomore year, I didn’t… I didn’t imagine you could have any feelings for me.”

“That’s the hard part.” Archie bites his lip. “I— didn’t. Your song was the last one I wrote, and it wasn’t really about what _I felt_. It was more like a… When you told me the things you did, back then, I hated that I had to hurt you. And I was really scared that our friendship would never be the same again. I think that, in the back of my mind, I always felt _guilty_ for not— _following?_ For not seeing what you saw with us,” he says. Betty nods, understanding. “And then suddenly I _could_ see it, but it wasn’t… It was never _real_ , you know. That’s what the song is about: something that could never be real.”

He can see Betty swallowing as she absorbs his words. “I was… worried when I saw that video,” she confesses. “I was worried that you had changed your mind about me and that I’d have to _face that_. Then, when you started going out with Veronica, I was worried that you were using her somehow, to get over something. And I was worried that the things I felt for you back then would come back and mess things up.”

Archie holds his breath. “They… didn’t, right? Come back and mess things up?”

Betty smiles. It’s a smile that might be a little sad, but it’s also very honest. “No,” she says, shaking her head. “Your song made me very sure that I _was_ over that… _idea_ I once had, about you and me,” she says. Archie smiles too, knowingly. “And things _are_ a bit messed up, but it’s not your fault. It has nothing to do with that.”

“One thing you were right about,” Archie says after a beat. He’s not about to tell Betty the whole truth, but he can give away some of it. “When Ronnie and I started our thing, I— I think I _was_ using her for something. I didn’t want you to think that I had feelings for you. Not only because of Jug, but also because— I didn’t want to have to look at you and say I didn’t have those feelings. _Again._ It’s why I shut you out for a while, and I’m sorry.”

Betty laughs, looking down. “I feel like I would’ve understood if you had told me that, but it’s okay. And, I mean, I always thought that you and Veronica were inevitable. I was kinda surprised it took you guys so long, to be honest.”

“Really?” Archie half-frowns, half-smiles.

“I mean, yeah. With the way you two always looked at each other, I think I was always just waiting for it to happen. You’re not very subtle,” Betty raises her eyebrows, “and neither is she.” Archie chuckles, his cheeks getting warm. They both look at the ground for a moment. “What are you doing here, anyways? Shouldn’t you be at the dance with her?”

Archie heaves out a breath. “Yeah. I am going. But I think I’m a little scared that she won’t want me there anymore” He purses his lips, and Betty creases her eyebrows, clearly confused. He shakes his head. “What about you? Is Jug picking you up?”

“Jughead… Doesn’t want to go anymore. He says he won’t be comfortable at Riverdale High, which is understandable.” She shuffles her feet, holding her knees closer. “He told me that multiple times and I kept pushing him. Now I’ve decided that I’m not going either.”

Archie looks at her for a second. His first friend, the girl he considers family. Her face is really familiar, and he hates any shadow of sadness washing over it. “C’mon, go get dressed,” he says, bumping her shoulder with his. Betty looks over at him with both her eyebrows raised. “You worked your ass off to decorate that gym. It’s not fair if you don’t go. Plus, if Veronica dumps me and Cheryl humiliates me, I could use the support,” he says with a self-deprecating laugh.

“Why would Cheryl—”

“C’mon, I’m running out of time here.”

 

 

 

 

 

Betty takes only fifteen minutes to put on her party dress and shoes. They quickly drive to the school in the Firebird. The dance has already started, but not a long time ago, since there are still students walking into the school.

They stop at the gym door, which is adorned with purple, satin curtains. There’s a guy taking photos of the couples arriving, and Archie spots Mrs. Lilah, the biology teacher, checking tickets at the door. He takes a deep breath.

Betty squeezes his arm for a moment and grins over at him in a silent _thank you_. She hands her ticket to the teacher and disappears behind the blue curtains, leaving Archie behind. His palms are sweaty, and his heart is racing. What is he doing? He hasn’t even _talked_ to Ronnie since trying to fake break up yesterday, and it feels like such a _stupid_ thing to do — just _show up_ like this and based on _what_?

“Your ticket, Mr. Andrews.” Mrs. Lilah pulls him back to reality. Archie swallows hard and searches for the ticket Veronica gave him — _shoved_ at him — yesterday. He hands it to the teacher, swallowing hard. “Have a nice time!”

_Here goes nothing._

Walking past the curtains, Archie stands there for a moment, taking in the ambiance. It always baffles him how the gym transforms and looks different for every dance the school hosts. The whole place is looking like a dream garden, bathed in purple light and decorated with big, green flowers and fairy lights. The DJ is still playing soft, background music that is barely heard over all the chatting.

He scans the room, looking for Veronica, his heart thumping inside his chest. It doesn’t take too long for him to find her — it’s like he’s always known where she’d be, because she has always been the one person he sees before seeing anyone else in the room. Veronica is there, wearing a short, gold dress that catches the spotlight, shimmering just right against her skin. Her raven hair is pinned up on one side, and Archie parts his lips, letting the air out of his lungs, suddenly not nervous anymore.

 _This girl. His_ girl. She asked him to be here. She _wants_ him here. There’s no reason to be nervous.

It takes him a small moment to realize that she’s talking to someone. To _Chuck Clayton_. Archie clenches his jaw, not willing to lose another second. He squares his shoulders and crosses the gym, walking up to them with firm steps.

“… and, I don’t know,” Archie hears Chuck saying as he gets closer. “If you need a ride to the Cape, maybe we can—”

“She’s got a ride.” Archie steps in, standing right next to Veronica. She parts her glossy lips, her breath hitching, when she sees that he's there. Maybe Chuck says something, but Archie doesn’t listen. His eyes meet Veronica’s dark brown, and he tries to read them beneath the surprise. “We’re going together, right?” he asks. He tries to ask her something else with his eyes. _Please, tell me I’m not too late._

“Archie…” Veronica breathes out, and Archie watches as she swallows hard, her eyes searching his face. She looks like a _star_ , shiny, beautiful skin exposed by the deep v-neck of her dress, little rhinestones trimming the shoulder straps.

He doesn’t _care_ that Chuck is standing right next to them. He doesn’t even _know_ if Chuck is still there. All he knows, when he takes her face in his hands and leans in, kissing her, is that even if it’s just a few more days, or if it’s forever, he’s going to show her, prove to her that she’s the only girl that he wants to sing about for the rest of his life.

It takes her a split second, but Veronica kisses him back, winding her arms around his neck. Archie’s hands leave her face to hold her by the waist, bringing her closer to him, his entire body tingling and melting as their lips move together. He can feel her breathing in, and he does the same. He can’t believe that she’s kissing him back, but at the same time, it just feels _right._

Archie’s smile breaks the kiss, but their lips linger a little longer. She also smiles, and it makes him open his eyes to find hers still closed. He rests his forehead against hers, still holding her by the waist when she opens her eyes.

They look at each other for a moment before she narrows her eyes and frowns deeply, taking a step back and _punching_ his arm with surprising strength for someone so small. “ _Ouch,_ ” Archie exclaims, bringing a hand to where she hit him. “What—”

“You took so long!” she hisses, shoving him again. Thankfully, Chuck isn’t there anymore to witness this, but some people around them watch the scene with curiosity. “I thought you weren’t coming! And you tried to _dump_ me!”

“Hey, wait—” Archie raises his hands. He could _laugh_ at how cute she is, so tiny and so angry, but he knows better. He remembers how hard she was hitting that punching bag, once. “I’m— _ouch_ , I’m sorry!”

Veronica crosses her arms over her chest, pouting her lips. Archie takes a deep breath, knowing that he probably deserves the fury attack. He can’t help but smile softly at her, carefully cupping her face with one hand, lifting her chin so she looks at him.

“I’m here now. I’ll make it up to you. I’ll be the perfect date,” he assures her, his thumb stroking her cheek.

She takes a moment to soften her expression, but it happens eventually, and the little smile she gives him causes his heart to flip. Veronica holds his hand that’s on her face, squeezing his fingers. “We’ll see about that,” she says in her usual, teasing tone. “Let’s get some punch, lover boy.”

Veronica entwines her fingers with his, and Archie smiles to himself. He brings their linked hands to his lips and plants a kiss on her knuckles, making her smile a little bigger. In the end, his dad was right: everything is worth seeing the person you love smile.

 

 

 

 

 

Ronnie drinks spiked punch, but Archie only drinks soda, since he’s driving. She holds his hand all through the night, and he follows wherever she leads, shuffling between different groups, standing together as they listen to different stories. They don’t kiss again, but just to be beside her, wrapping his arm around her waist whenever he can, and watching her beautiful face is more than enough to fill Archie’s heart with warmth.

At some point, she says she’s going to the ladies’ room to reapply her lip gloss. She presses a kiss to his cheek before leaving, and Archie watches her glittery dress swing as she walks. He heaves out a breath and looks around for a second.

He finds Betty in her baby blue dress, and she’s actually hanging out with Reggie, of all people. They’re sitting at a table with punch cups in their hands, and she’s laughing reluctantly about something he just said.

Archie walks up to them. When Betty notices, they exchange a knowing look, and she gets up from the table, telling Reggie something, with her hand on his shoulder, before leaving. Reggie scratches his head and arranges his features into a remorseful expression when he notices Archie is approaching him.

“So,” Archie says, shoving his hands into the pockets of his denim, “you fixed my car.”

Reggie nods slowly. “Coop said it might be a good idea,” he says, swirling the punch inside his glass. “She talked to your dad. I just— Well, I hope you like it.”

“You think that will fix everything else?” Archie asks, waiting for an honest answer. Reggie tilts his head up to look at Archie and shrugs.

“I don’t think so,” he says, swallowing. “But I hope it’s a start. I really am sorry, dude.”

Archie ponders. Yes, what Reggie did was horrible, but at least it somehow _kickstarted_ everything. Who knows if he’d be here with Veronica, had Reggie not done what he did? Who knows if he would’ve one day been brave enough to admit how much he cares for her and let himself _actually_ get to know her instead of just watching from afar?

“Just don’t snoop on my phone,” Archie finally says, making a big smile appear on Reggie’s face. “ _Ever_ again, do you hear me?”

“You’ve got it, bro!” Reggie gets up, throwing his arms around Archie. He laughs, hugging Reggie back, giving a few pats on his back. To be quite honest, he kind of _missed_ having this goof around.

 

 

 

 

 

Veronica is back almost at the same time as the DJ starts playing the first slow song of the evening. All around them, couples start to take the dance floor. Archie sees Cheryl and Heather, smiles on their faces as they start to dance very slowly. Kevin is actually dancing with Betty, but Moose doesn’t seem to mind as he watches and talks to Reggie next to the punch table, probably spiking the punch even more.

“Would you give me the honor?” Archie asks, extending one hand to Veronica, who looks more beautiful every time he lays eyes on her and catches a new detail. He _is_ trying to charm her, trying to be the perfect boyfriend just like he promised, and she smiles almost like she doesn’t _want_ to admit that he’s succeeding. At least, that’s what he hopes is happening.

“Okay.”

Veronica lets him lead her to the dancefloor. She rests one hand on his arm, and he places one of his hands on her waist. Her dress has a plunging back, and Archie dares to allow his fingertips to graze her skin. The air in his lungs becomes scarce when he looks down at her face, and the way the corners of her mouth are curling up.

“You look beautiful,” he says under his breath, unable to wipe a stupid, soft smile off of his face. “Did I say that already?”

“No,” she says, almost nonchalant, but she holds his hand a little tighter. “You look gorgeous too, as anticipated.”

Archie chuckles, bringing her _just_ a bit closer, and she lets him. The song playing says _I feel it under my skin, there’s a whole lot of heart in me._ Archie swallows, getting more serious. “When I got here and you were talking to Chuck…” he starts, carefully. There’s a part of him that _doesn’t want_ to know, but he figures that if he’s going to see this through, it’s better if they talk about it, even if just a little.

Veronica shakes her head before he can go on. “Chuck was offering me a ride, but it’s not— he thinks we should be on good terms during the trip. He's happy with Josie. We're just going to try to put the past behind us and be friends,” she says. Archie feels blood rush to his cheeks, looking away. He feels so _dumb_ for overhearing their conversation the other day and not realizing that it could, maybe, mean something else. Something like exes trying to be civil. “Are we really going together?”  she asks.

Archie looks back at her, tilting his head so he can look into her eyes. There’s some sort of vulnerability that he might have seen before, and it gets his heart beating at the base of his throat. “Yeah,” he murmurs, “if you still want to.”

“I didn’t cancel the reservations, so…” She looks at him, almost bashful. Just thinking of spending a _week_ with Veronica by his side, twenty-four-seven, is something that gets his insides turning like he’s about to ride a rollercoaster. He’s not _expecting_ anything but to be close to her, yet the perspective of sleeping and waking up next to her is something that sucks the oxygen out of his lungs.

Archie focus on the feeling of her hand in his, of her bare skin under his fingertips, of her chest pressed against him, and lets the moment ground him, coming back to the slow song playing.

“Why did you decide to come?” she asks after a moment of silence. Archie looks down at her, feeling the beat of his heart inside his chest.

“It’s been over a whole day without _my girlfriend,_ ” Archie says, serious, leaning in a little, bringing her hand to his chest so she can feel his heart beating through his shirt. He can sense Veronica holding her breath. He’s aware that he’s not using the _fake_ before it, and he hopes she realizes that too. “And I don't think I can stay away from you any longer.”

Veronica stares into his eyes, slowly letting out the air she held inside, and he catches a flash of _something_ in her gaze. Very quietly, Veronica lets go of his hand so she can wrap her arms around his torso, leaning her head against his chest. Archie holds her closer, resting his nose on the top of her head, breathing her in, their bodies still swinging slowly to the music.

 

 

 

 

 

A couple of hours and a few more dances later, the gym starts to empty out. The dance ran as smoothly as possible, and Archie’s heart is full — he can’t believe that he actually got to spend all this time so close to Ronnie, tonight. That she wasn’t whisked away as she always was at other parties, that he got to kiss her, even if just once.

He’s sitting at a table for a little while, watching her engage in a conversation with Ginger, when their eyes meet. She touches Ginger’s arm and excuses herself, walking up to him with slight dozy eyes and a soft smile. “I’m tired,” she says, standing right in front of him, their knees almost touching. She reaches out a hand and brushes Archie’s hair away from his forehead, and he can feel himself melting into the feeling. “I’m probably gonna call Smithers. Do you need a ride?”

Archie takes her hand, unable to hold back on his need to keep touching her, and smiles, shaking his head. “I think I might actually surprise you,” he says. Veronica raises her eyebrows in curiosity, and Archie’s smile widens until he chuckles.

 

 

 

 

 

They don’t bother with saying goodbyes — everyone will meet up in Cape Cod the next day, anyways — and Archie feels excited, like a little kid, when he steers her outside, into the parking lot. It’s a bit chilly now, so he takes off his jacket and wraps it around her shoulders, making sure that she isn’t cold. Veronica has her eyes narrowed, a bit suspicious of what’s going on, but she soon spots his Firebird, a fucking blue _jewel_ amongst the other cars.

Her jaw drops. “Is that—”

“My car? Yes,” Archie says, smug, even tilting his chin up a little bit. “And we’ll be driving it tomorrow. I mean, if you’re not opposed—” he stops when she lets out a sound that’s almost a squeak, excited as she runs to the car.

 

 

 

 

 

Veronica runs her hand over the panel and turns on the radio like she owns the car, but Archie doesn’t mind. It feels very _right_ to have her by his side, in the car his grandpa adored and that his dad kept for him. It’s a picture that just _fits_ in its entirety.

She keeps beaming all the way from school to the Pembrooke, laughing when he tells her the truth — that it was actually Reggie who fixed the Firebird in order to make amends — and resting a hand behind his head, her fingers threading careful patterns in his hair as he drives her home.

“I have to say,” she unbuckles her seatbelt when he pulls over in front of her building, “I wasn’t sure if you were going to come, tonight.”

Her voice is a bit heavier, and her smile fades a little when she says that. Archie wets his lips, unbuckling his own seatbelt and turning off the engine. The radio stops, too, and there's a lot of silence around them when he looks over at her. “I—” he heaves out a breath. “I misunderstood some things, and I panicked. But I’m—”

“Shh.” Veronica places two fingers over his lips. She leans in, and he figures he can swallow the _sorry_ he was going to say. Slowly, she lets her fingers drop from his lips to his chin and then down until she’s hooking them around his collar. Archie closes his eyes when she comes even closer to his face, planting a kiss on the corner of his mouth, and then a little to the side, on his cheek. She traces her soft lips up his jaw, breathing against his skin. Archie feels himself breathing harder. “Thank you for being there with me,” she whispers in his ear, her teeth grazing against his earlobe.

Archie barely listens, because Veronica skims her lips all over his ear and then presses a kiss on the bone behind it, ripping a soft groan from the bottom of his throat, desire coiling low in his belly.

And then, as suddenly as it started, she pulls away, letting go of his shirt and taking all the warmth around them with her. His whole body is covered in goosebumps, and he feels overwhelmed and paralyzed, almost unable to open his eyes. “I’ll meet you at your house tomorrow at seven,” she says.

 _Holy shit_ is all that Archie can think when she gets out of the car and goes into her building, leaving nothing but his blood running fast and the trace of her perfume behind.

 

 

 

 

 

Archie only manages to get a little more than three hours of rest. It’s his third sleepless night in a row, but he’s up and energized when the first rays of sunlight come through his window. He jumps out of bed just before six, takes a shower, and proceeds to pack for the trip.

He shoves a bunch of clothes into a duffel bag, along with toiletries and sunscreen. He puts a mustard sweatshirt on over a white tee and goes down the stairs, a burst of optimism and excitement running around his whole body.

Archie finds his dad sitting at the kitchen island, already up and reading the newspaper with a cup of coffee. He had mentioned the trip to his father a couple weeks ago, asking for his permission after spending a whole hour on the phone with his mom, so he could tell Fred that Mary had already given him her blessing.

During breakfast, while watching Archie swallow down cereal, Fred gives him warnings about responsibility and safety. He tells Archie not to drink — _too much_ , he then adds, almost as if remembering another era — to drive carefully and only if he isn’t tired, and to remember that he isn’t _everybody_ and that he doesn’t need to do what everybody else is doing. Archie listens, nodding and agreeing, and Fred punctuates the whole lecture with an _I trust you, kiddo_.

Archie starts to put his bag and guitar case in the car, the garage door wide open. It’s almost 7:10 when there’s movement at the door, and Archie turns around to smile at Veronica — after dreaming about her the entire night — when he’s surprised by _Reggie Mantle_ throwing a frisbee at him.

With luck, Archie has good reflexes.

“What the f—”

“My man! Good morning!” Reggie greets. He's wearing aviator sunglasses and a red, floral shirt that Archie could have never imagined him wearing. He is _confused_ about what Reggie is doing here. “Are we set to leave?! I brought snacks for the road _and_ an extra pair of shades for you, in case you don’t have any.”

“Reg…” Archie frowns, puzzled, as he takes in Reggie’s duffel bag, backpack, and skateboard. He can’t recall offering to drive Reggie to the Cape. “I’m— Weren't you riding with Moose and Kevin?”

Reggie tilts his head. “Yeah but that’s before we got this babe here all dolled up.” He gives the Firebird two small pats. “Besides, it’s OSB, dude! We’re in this together! Oh, cool, you’re taking your guitar.”

Archie watches as Reggie starts to put all of his things in the trunk, unable to find a way to rain on his parade and warn him that he had plans to drive down with Veronica — _only_ Veronica. Who was supposed to be here fifteen minutes ago.

Discreetly, Archie takes his phone out so he can text Ronnie to warn her that they might have an inconvenience, when the sound of a car pulling up in front of his house stops him. _Too late_. He leaves the garage and walks towards the end of the driveway where Smithers just parked.

Archie greets Smithers with a nod when the driver goes around to get Veronica’s luggage and opens the rear door for her. She looks rather different than yesterday, in a white, almost sheer, top that’s tied into a knot at her waist, showing a strip of skin between it and her high-waisted shorts. “Hey,” Archie doesn’t hold back the soft grin when he sees her, helping her out of the car.

“ _Bonjour,_ Archiekins,” she says, placing a quick kiss on the corner of his smile. “Smithers, you can take these to the garage.”

“Of course, Miss Veronica.”

Archie raises both of his eyebrows when he sees Smithers taking two large leather bags _and_ a carry-on, all with the same print, which looks very high-end, towards the garage. It’s a _lot_ of luggage, and he’s not sure it will fit next to all of his (and Reggie’s) shit.

Oh, _fuck_. Reggie exists. He opens his mouth to warn Veronica, but she’s already gone, heading into the garage. Archie runs after her. Somehow, Smithers seems to have found a way to fit everything in the trunk.

“Ronnie—” Archie stands next to her, reaching out to touch her arm.

“Thank you, Smithers,” Veronica interrupts him, waving Smithers goodbye. The driver tips his hat and wishes her a nice trip. Archie looks around the garage, but Reggie is nowhere to be seen. Maybe he’s inside the house talking to Fred?

It’s the perfect time to tell her about their uninvited road-trip partner, but the words die inside his mouth, because when Smithers leaves, Veronica comes closer to Archie, pressing her body against his, one of her thighs _kind of_ between his. She smooths her hands down his chest. “You should wear this color more often,” she says with a grin.

A part of Archie’s brain tells him to buy only mustard-colored clothes from now on. Another part makes him face both of his hands on her waist, just touching where her skin is bare. He parts his lips, feeling his throat drying out, and forgets about what he had to tell her.

“So, are we ready to take this sexy new Firebird of yours down to lovers’ lane?”

“Are we leaving today or _what_?” Reggie’s annoyed voice comes from _somewhere_. Archie realizes that his face is _on fire_ when Veronica lets go of him abruptly, frowning as she turns around to find Reggie’s head popping out the window. “It’s almost _eight_!”

“What—” Veronica’s mouth hangs open, and she turns to Archie with a confused look on her face. Archie rubs a hand on the back of his neck, apologetic.

“He just showed up. I couldn’t say _no_ ,” he explains in a low voice, still a bit flushed. Veronica rolls her eyes in annoyance. “Look, I don’t want him here any more than you do, but—”

“ _Fine_.” Veronica sighs, and Archie watches as she walks to the car with firm steps, opening the passenger-side door. “Reginald, hello. _Out._ ”

Archie's eyes widen. Wait a second, he didn’t think that she’d _actually_ —

“Looking good today, V. Lo.” Reggie grins. Veronica stands with one hand resting on the door and a withering glare, if Archie had ever seen one. “ _Okay_ , I’ll take the backseat.” Reggie blows out a defeated breath, getting out of the car. Veronica offers him a fake smile as she takes his place in shotgun.

 

 

 

 

 

It’s almost a five-hour drive from Riverdale to Cape Cod, but the sky is blue the entire way. He doesn’t want to admit it but adding Reggie to the mix makes things a bit more fun. Archie can’t help but laugh quietly at him and Ronnie bickering. At some point, the three of them actually get along, coming to a consensus about the playlist, which turns into a mix of _Today's Top Hits_ and 90’s pop music.

Between Springfield and Worcester, Reggie decides to take a nap. It lasts less than half-an-hour, but Archie turns down the radio so their brains can take a break. That’s when Veronica places a hand on his leg for no reason at all. She’s quiet, looking out the window, and Archie puts his hand on top of hers, a lingering smile on his lips.

They stop at a gas station so they can rest a little.

“I feel like your kid, sitting back here,” Reggie announces, getting out of the backseat and stretching. “Can I call you Mom and Dad?”

Veronica, who is putting her wedges back on, rolls her eyes. “No. First of all, _my kid_ would never be seen with _that_ shirt,” she says, and Archie laughs, quietly, as Reggie narrows his eyes. “I’m going to the ladies’ room. Don’t miss me too much,” she tells Archie, giving him an unexpected peck. Archie blinks, pressing his lips together, his gaze following her.

“So...” Reggie rests against the Firebird, crossing his arms over his chest. “Were you and Mom going to make that trip to lovers’ lane?” he asks with a smirk. “Did I spoil all the fun?”

Archie feels his face heating up. “What?” His voice comes out higher than intended. He clears his throat. It’s none of Reggie’s business, but Archie feels the urge to answer anyway. “It’s not… It’s not _like that_.” He runs a hand through his hair.

Reggie nods and then is hit with some sort of _realization_ that makes Archie’s cheeks even redder. “ _Oh,_ so you two never…”

“No,” Archie says, honestly. Reggie makes a dumbfounded face, and Archie imagines _explaining_ the whole thing to Reggie or to anyone else, really.

“Well,” he waits for a joke or a stupid comment, but Reggie just shrugs, “it’ll just make it more special when it happens, right?”

 _Right._ As if. She was probably just kidding about _lover’s lane_ , teasing him the way she liked to do. Not only have they never had sex, they've kissed only a few times, and it was _mostly_ staged. Except when it wasn’t. Like last night, when her mouth found just the right spot between his jaw and his neck.

Archie shakes his head. She _was_ probably just joking.

 

 

 

 

 

When they _finally_ get to the Cape, Archie makes two stops — one at the Airbnb, to drop off Reggie, and another at the Chatham Bars Inn, which looks like a fucking _beach palace_ or something. It’s considerably warmer at the seaside than it was back in Riverdale, even with the sun starting to set.

The bellhop takes their luggage inside. Veronica walks inside the hotel with the ease of someone who’s been staying in these places their entire life, and Archie stands behind her, carrying his guitar case just because he feels a bit uncomfortable having someone else taking care of his stuff.

The receptionist treats them both very well. Archie wonders, as Veronica fills out a form, if they're _allowed_ to check in without a guardian, but says nothing until they’re alone in front of their room door. Ronnie, who’s handling the card key, looks over her shoulder and says that _everything is allowed for a Lodge_ , with a smile that makes his stomach flip.

The room is huge, decorated with a nautical theme and different shades of white and blue. There _is_ , indeed, a view of the ocean behind the sheer white curtains.

And two beds.

They’re both double beds, and the room can easily accommodate _four_ people, not just two, but they’re separate, like Veronica promised they would be from the beginning. She chooses the one closer to the large window, placing her purse on it, and Archie can barely walk into the room. He’s suddenly overwhelmed by how _real_ this all feels, by being able to _see_ himself spending the entire week with her without getting weary or tired of it, enjoying every single moment. He’s also a bit _scared_ that he’s been building up some sort of expectation ever since yesterday.

What if _this_ , ultimately, isn’t what she wants? What if it’s just during Spring Break, until their contract is due?

 

 

 

 

 

Veronica lies on her bed for ten minutes, with her phone in her hands, while Archie sits awkwardly at the end of _his_ bed, trying not to look at her _too much_. Outside, the sky is darkening, and the warm sea breeze smells like salt. She gets up suddenly, as energetic as always, announcing that Cheryl has arrived and that everybody will meet for dinner and drinks at some place nearby called _The Blue Coral._ She opens one of her bags and disappears into the bathroom with it.

Archie's sleepless nights are starting to take their tow — especially after driving the whole day — and he doesn’t really feel like going out. So, he thinks about telling Ronnie that he might stay behind because he’s really tired, but when she comes out of the bathroom, he stops thinking altogether. She has changed into a simple black skirt and nothing else but a bright red bikini top. It’s strapless, twisting in the middle, and she’s the one holding it against her chest.

“Can you help me tie this up?” she asks, turning around to show him her exposed back, interrupted only by the dark waves of her hair. It’s more skin than he’s seen before, even more than at that party. He can’t _breathe_ for a second. He thinks he might faint if he doesn’t— “Please?”

Archie swallows hard. It feels like forever until he gathers up the courage to get up and walk over to her. He takes in a deep breath and takes the straps of her bikini to tie them together, his fingers brushing against her soft, warm skin. He feels a shiver running up his spine when he touches her.

Veronica turns her head the slightest bit. Archie opens his mouth so he can exhale. He lets go of the bikini straps, tracing his fingertips up her spine, unable to _not_ touch her. She flinches, but he’s not sure if it’s an indication for him to stop — her skin is covered with goosebumps, and her mouth is parted.

One of his hands reaches the nape of her neck, under the black satin of her hair. He rests the other one gently on her hip bone. His eyes wander down, taking in her naked back and the curve of her ass under the black skirt. She feels like fire. Archie wets his lips, not daring to lose control even though all he wants to do is press her back against him and—

Veronica lowers her arms, and the bikini top falls at her feet with a soft _thud_. _Fuck_ , she’s naked from the waist up and, being taller than her, he can see the soft curve of her breasts, the perkiness of her nipples. Archie’s heart races inside his chest.

“Kiss me,” she breathes out, her voice sounding like a dream. Archie almost rolls his eyes with the mere perspective. When he dives his head down and puts his mouth on her shoulder, tongue tasting the sweetness of her skin, he does roll his eyes.

“Ronnie,” he murmurs, like a prayer, lapping the place where her shoulder meets her neck, pushing his fingers into her hip. Veronica _moans_. It’s not loud, but she does. It makes him moan too, bringing her closer without thinking, pressing against her, inevitably hard.

He kisses up to the side of her neck and the bone behind her ear, taking in the scent of her hair from up close. She smells so fucking good, and it makes his entire body _aching_ with desire. Veronica pushes her hips back against him, and he groans, biting her earlobe.

She takes his hands, wrapping hers around them, and places them on her chest. Archie is not sure how he survives the feeling of her hard nipples against his palm and the fullness of her breasts in his hands, paired with the way she’s grinding on him, but he _does_ , breathing scarcely on her ear. “Ronnie,” he says again.

 _“Yes_ ,” she moans back. Archie pinches one of her nipples between his thumb and forefinger, and she turns inside his arms, her lips crashing on his with a famine he’s never experienced before.

They kiss with an open mouth, one of his hands still on her breast, the other diving inside her hair until his fingers are tangled in the black strands. Veronica grabs the hem of his t-shirt, pulling it up, and they separate their mouths so it can slide off his head. She digs her nails into his chest, and Archie hisses, looking down at her.

She’s looking up at him. When their eyes meet and hers are _so dark_ , everything feels like an inevitable plan: she walked into Pop’s two years ago with the sole purpose of one day being there, naked breasts against naked chest. Archie kissed her in a closet only hoping to _see_ her like this, panting. They only ever agreed on fake dating so they could be there, in this hotel room, looking at each other.

“Are you sure you want this?” Archie finds it in him to ask before she kisses him again. “Is it real?”

She inhales. Her manicured nails go from his chest up to his collarbone, neck, and jaw, but not scratching this time, just touching. There’s a beat of silence, and Archie thinks he’s an idiot for asking that because he doesn’t think he’ll be able to get over it if she says it isn’t.

Veronica brushes her fingertips against his lips. “It’s always been real,” she says so softly that he almost doesn't hear her.

But he does. And he smiles, leaning in to touch her forehead with his, the tips of their noses bumping. Archie wants to say so many things — that he can’t believe they’re here, that he’s so helplessly in love with her that it _hurts_ — but she captures his bottom lip with hers and they kiss again, the simple touch of their tongues being enough to make them start again.

She whimpers, tugging at his hair, and it sends a shiver through his body and down to his erection. Archie presses himself against her more firmly and moans into her mouth. He places his hands on the back of her thighs and pulls her up to wrap her legs around his waist. He carries her effortlessly until they fall on the mattress of his bed.

Veronica holds him, kisses him, runs her hands all over his back and chest. Archie feels the heat between her legs under the skirt, pushing down on her, searching for friction. He’s hard and pulsing, and he wants so much _more_. He wants everything.

“Archie,” she gasps when he starts kissing down her neck and chest, tasting her skin, taking one nipple in his mouth, sucking it gently. She puts her hand in his hair, pulling and pushing at the same time. “Archie, _please._ ”

He slides his fingers along her right thigh until they're under her skirt. Giving attention to the other nipple, until his hand finds her underwear. He presses his thumb against her, over her panties, groaning when he realizes that she’s so wet it’s dampening the fabric. She arches underneath him, pulling his hair harder.

He has only ever had sex with Val, and he’s not sure how much he’s really learned — it took a lot of trial and error; that's for sure. But none of it matters because this is _Veronica_. Veronica Lodge, his turning point, who he wants so fucking much it makes him dizzy.

And he _is_ dizzy as he makes his way down her body, a mix of tongue, lips, and ragged breath. He pushes her skirt and underwear down as he goes, looking up to catch her reaction. Just looking at her is enough to set him on fire. Except he's already on fire and has been since they’ve met. He can feel his erection throbbing inside his pants, and he holds onto her thighs once his mouth reaches the place he wants the most.

“Archie,” she says again, bucking her hips up. He flicks his tongue against her, running it along her wet folds, feeling her scent and her taste. It’s so fucking good — he wonders if he isn’t hallucinating everything, if it isn’t just another vivid dream and if he won’t wake up alone in bed, still without her. He’ll probably set himself on fire if that's the case. “Oh, _yes_ , please.”

She’s quivering underneath him when he starts sucking and teasing her clit, reaching one hand up to hold her breast. Veronica places her hand on top of his, making him press harder. “ _Fuck,_ Ronnie,” he breathes and comes back to her, using his other hand to slide a finger inside her, feeling her losing it.

When she comes, whimpering, pushing his head against her until he almost can’t breathe, Archie thinks he’s going to come too.

“Come here,” she breathes out, still not quite down from her orgasm, pulling him up until they’re kissing, coaxing his tongue into her mouth as she arches the length of her naked body against him.

She unbuttons his jeans, sliding her hand inside of them, underwear too, taking him in her hand and pumping him. Archie groans and pulls away from her mouth so he can look down and watch her movements. She stops to take his pants and boxers off, and Archie can’t believe it. He can’t believe that she’s actually holding him in her hand, that she’s sliding him against her wetness, preparing him for what’s going to happen.

“Do you want me?” she asks, her chest flushed, looking up into his eyes.

He doesn’t even know how to answer her without overwhelming her: he hadn’t known it was possible to need a person to such a consuming degree. Of course, he wants her, every bit of her. He’s _burning_ for her.  He can’t stop himself from hoping that he can somehow convince her to stay with him forever.

“Yes,” he answers, holding her face in his hands, his voice reaching a lower pitch. “Ronnie, I've never wanted anything more than I want you.”

She kisses him again. They probably need to stop and get a condom, but right now, Archie just lets himself get swept away by the feeling, pressing his erection against her stomach as he lies on top of her, kissing her slowly until they’re breathless.

It’s so _real._ It’s always been real.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~~I'll come back with a better author's note. For now, have the playlist:~~
> 
> I am back with a better author's note! In this chapter, we are finally reaching our endgame so a lot of things happened, like Archie getting smacked on the head and realizing that *duuuh*, maybe they weren't faking it at all! lol
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter with this rate change. I am really happy with how it turned out, especially how some friendships were mended. I felt like it was needed!
> 
> Things you can expect for the final chapter: some other friendships are mended, some cute things happen, the Firebird is still around! :p
> 
> This chapter is dedicated to my girlie girl Milly, whose birthday was the day I published it and who's the dream reader. Love you, child! And thanks beta-girl Nic, and wifey AK, for all the help as usual.
> 
> Now, on to the playlist:
> 
>   * Robbers - 1975 (song at the beginning... _she's got a face straight out a magazine_ ) 
>   * There's No Way - LAUV (to keep up with the theme)
>   * Fools - Troye Sivan
>   * Whole Lot of a Heart - Ingrid Michaelson (first dance song)
>   * Daft Pretty Boys - Bad Suns
>   * Visions of Gideon - Sufjan Stevens (pretty sad, but the song I listened to while writing the last scene ;) )
> 



	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aw, the final installment for our beloved fic is here! i'll talk to you in the end notes!

_right from the start i knew,  
you'd set a fire in me_

 

::  
::  
::

“Wake up, sleepyhead.”

Archie is laying down on his stomach, cheek against the soft pillows, already half-awake when Veronica’s voice echoes inside his brain. He feels her weight on top of him and smiles softly when he realizes that she’s pressing gentle kisses on his bare shoulder.

“Mmmm.”

“The sun is shining,” she says, nestling her chin in the curve of his neck. The sun is, indeed, shining. Archie can feel it on his still closed eyes, a strip of sunlight coming through the window curtains. Veronica has her nose on his cheek. “We haven’t left the room yet…” Her voice is teasing.

Archie chuckles, wetting his lips. They’re swollen and sensitive after all the kissing and biting, but it’s a wonderful sensation. He can’t even believe that this is waking up — last night was fucking amazing. Full hours of kissing and loving Veronica, of feeling all of her skin against his skin, of being deep inside her. He was completely lost, and he didn’t ever want to be found again.

“Mmmm,” he hums again, just enjoying her lips against his skin when he turns them around until she’s lying beside him and he can hover over her, opening his eyes. She’s the first thing he sees this morning. Veronica has his white tee on, her hair messier than usual, her eyes free of any makeup but shining so bright. She’s so amazing. He’s so in love with her that he doesn’t know what to do with his face.

“Good morning,” he says, brushing her hair away from her forehead.

“Hey,” she lifts her head a little, reaching up so she can kiss him. Her lips also feel swollen, and it makes Archie smile against them. “Everyone is looking for us,” she says, gently placing a hand on the side of his neck.

“Yeah?” he kisses her again, pressing into it. He puts one of his hands on her waist, feeling the soft cotton of his own t-shirt under his palm, pulling it up a little until he finds skin, which is even softer. Veronica kisses him lazily as he touches her stomach under the t-shirt. “Do we care that they’re looking for us?”

She laughs quietly, shrugging her shoulders. Archie rubs his thumb on her hip bone, a bit higher than the hem of her underwear, and she takes a deep breath, her smile fading. He looks intently at her, trying to memorize all the details of her face just like that, underneath him, staring up at him. The arch of her eyebrows, the way her lower lip is fuller than her upper lip, the small tip of her nose, the moles on her collarbone.

There have been some happy mornings in Archie’s life — like when he got Vegas for Christmas, a small pup wrapped up in a red bow, and when he succeeded in recreating one of his dad’s favorite songs on the guitar — but nothing compares to _this_.

“What’s on your mind?” she asks, the hand on his neck now on his cheek, bringing him back from his trance.

 _I love you_ , Archie thinks as he leans in until their noses bump together. It’s something slightly _scary_ , how easy it is for him to _feel_ that and to know that it _is_ what he’s feeling. _Love_ , something he sang about without really knowing what it was. He surely understands now. He can’t say it — there might be some written rules about these things having a _right time_ — so, he just hopes that she _knows_.

“Maybe we can stay in the room the whole week,” he says instead, kissing her quickly, and she laughs. “Just us, here...”

“Cheryl is going to throw a fit if I never show up for her last spring break trip,” she says, smiling against his mouth.

“Who, now?” he jokes, and Ronnie laughs again, pulling him in for a proper kiss. Her tongue runs between his lips, asking for access into his mouth, which he grants with a shadow of a smile, sighing when he feels her pushing him a little until he has his back on the mattress. She kisses him slowly as she traces her fingers on his naked chest. They only pull apart after a couple of minutes, and Archie feels like he’s dreaming.

“What’s on _your_ mind?” he asks, taking her hand in his.

“Well.” She looks at him through sleepy eyes and props herself up on her elbow so she has more leverage to kiss him again. “ _Archie,_ ” she murmurs, and he frowns until she plants a kiss on his jawline. “Archie, Archie, Archie,” she repeats, lips on his neck, now. “Archie…”

 _Oh, wow_ , Archie thinks, taking a deep breath. He lets himself be kissed and listens to her saying his name over and over until his blood is _boiling_ and he can’t help but pull her on top of him, kissing her hard and taking her breath away.

This Sunday morning is _seriously_ the best morning, ever.

 

 

 

 

 

They spend the morning the same way they spent the night, in a rush of heat, skin, and breathy sounds. When her phone starts buzzing non-stop with texts from Cheryl and Kevin, Veronica resolves that they _will_ leave the room. 

“We didn’t come here to do this the entire day,” she says decidedly, wrapping the sheet around her body. Archie lies back, lazy and satisfied. With her rumpled hair and scratch marks burning on his back, it’s kind of hard to believe her set jaw. “I’m taking a shower, and then we’re leaving to meet everyone at the beach.”

“Okay.” He shrugs and watches as she gets up and starts to gather their discarded clothes around the room. Archie raises his eyebrows when she’s about to enter the bathroom. “Should I join you?”

“No.” She glares at him, and he chuckles.

 

 

 

 

 

It’s past noon when they join everyone at the beach. The sun is high in the cloudless sky. Archie doesn’t particularly enjoy letting go of Veronica’s hand when Cheryl steals her away to join the girls, who are sitting on towels and chatting, but he soon gets distracted by Moose approaching him with a beer.

“Thankfully,” Kevin says, looking at him from above his wayfarers. “I thought the fuckathon would never end.”

Archie feels his face heating up. “Nice to see you too, Kev.” He sips his beer and doesn’t even have time to think of a better excuse when he spots Ronnie coming towards him, holding a bottle of sunscreen. His face gets even warmer because she took the cover-up off and is wearing the same red bikini top that set everything alight, yesterday.

“You have to put on sunscreen, lover boy,” she tells him, already reaching out to apply sunscreen on his face. Archie can hear Kevin laughing, but he doesn’t really mind — she touches his face in such a tender way, a small smile lingering on her lips. “ _Mi gûerito_.”

He doesn’t know what that means, but he likes the way it sounds coming out of her mouth and smiles too, leaning in to give her a kiss just because he can. It’s weird — they’re in public, but they’re not pretending anymore. She kisses him back not because she _has to_ , but because she _wants to_. Because she wants _him_ , as she stated time and time again the past several hours.

Some sunscreen that was left on his nose transfers to her, and she laughs when they break the kiss, wrinkling her nose when he rubs the lotion on it.

“Oh, Marmaduke.” Archie turns his face when he hears Kevin singsong. He has one arm around Moose’s torso now, and they’re blatantly watching the scene. “Have we ever been so adorable?”

 

 

 

 

 

The sun is going down, almost as if into the sea, and the sky is a deep blue, turning into purple and orange as the sun gets closer to the horizon. They’ve spent the whole day at the beach, playing volleyball, swimming, drinking, and just laughing. 

Archie sits back on a towel and watches as his friends gather around the grill, where Chuck is cooking hot dogs. Reggie has gotten super drunk, slept with his face on the sand, and revived. Now, he’s drinking water as he texts someone with a smile lingering on his lips. Josie stole Archie’s guitar and is playing a Jason Mraz song — she sounds much better than Jason ever will, and Archie likes the way Veronica’s voice harmonizes with the other two Pussycats as she snaps her fingers and sings _so open up your mind and see like me…_

She’s wearing his Riverdale High sweatshirt, so big it covers her thighs. The salt and the wind have made her hair so messy that she’s put it up in a bun, and Archie wishes that he could just _stop_ looking at her — it’s always been impossible.

“Hot dog?” Archie is pulled from his thoughts and looks up to see Cheryl offering him a paper plate. She hasn’t spoken to him ever since slapping him in the hallway yesterday, but it feels like a lifetime since that ever happened. He shrugs, accepting the food.

“I see you didn’t humiliate me in front of the whole school, yesterday,” Archie says, moving a little bit to the side so Cheryl can sit on the towel next to him. She flips her lustrous red hair to one side, looking over at him.

“Well, there was no need. I knew you wouldn’t be crazy enough to _not_ fix things with Veronica, and I was right. You _did_ fix it. Several times, may I add?” She lifts an eyebrow. Archie, who was midway through a bite, stops when he realizes the _tone_ of her voice. “Didn’t know you had it in you, _Archiekins_.”

Archie feels a bunch of different sensations at the same time — he’s kind of amused, but also mortified, as his cheeks get inevitably warm, and he cringes when he hears Cheryl call him that nickname. In the end, he just chuckles, shaking his head in disbelief. “Well, there’s a lot you don’t know about me.” He wiggles his eyebrows, playfully.

Cheryl’s face contorts in disgust, and Archie isn’t sure if she’s joking. _“Ew_ ,” she says, waving a dismissive hand. Archie laughs, and Cheryl almost follows — she’s not one to laugh so much, so he’s content with the curl of her red lips (even at the beach). For better or for worse, he’s going to miss Cheryl next year.

 

 

 

 

 

The days that follow are filled with sunshine and sea breeze, and Archie tries to really seize the moment and enjoy the time he gets to spend with his friends because he knows that soon people like Cheryl, Heather, Jason, Polly, and even Chuck will all be leaving. They’ll all find homes away from home and make new friends. It makes him wonder about next year, how it will be _his turn_ to stand around a bonfire and say goodbye to many people. 

It’s still not his turn, though, and he makes sure to really appreciate every single minute of the trip. On the third day, he goes into town with Ronnie — for snacks and supplies and, _er,_ more condoms, because the box she brought is empty after the second night they spend together — and ends up buying another disposable camera. She rolls her eyes and gives him the same half-assed lecture from New York, about _phones_ and _high-resolution_ , but this time he shuts her up with a kiss, knowing that she’ll be more than happy to model for him at some point.

It’s fair to say that _Operation Spring Break_ is a success.

Archie gets into stupid competitions with Reggie and Moose — who can swim faster, who can eat more pizza — which Ronnies disapproves of (but not really).  She’s always watching over her sunglasses, her tan skin turning darker as it catches more sun. The boys bury Kevin in the sand and then promise to buy him drinks for the rest of the trip.

One day, they wake up freakishly early to take a boat ride and go whale watching, which Archie didn’t know was a thing until Heather showed up with tickets for everyone despite the complaints. It’s still super chilly in the mornings, and everyone is a bit hungover from the usual partying the night before, but Veronica holds him and rests her head on his chest, cuddling close to him as they wait and wait. And suddenly, everything feels good again.

When the whales _do_ show up, it’s super exciting. He captures pictures with his disposable camera _and_ with his phone so he can send them to Betty and Jughead, knowing that his friends would’ve loved to be here.

The days are good, but the evenings are even better. Archie loves spending time with everyone, but there’s something so special about coming back to the hotel with Ronnie and being alone with he. She’s something else entirely, prettier than all the sunsets they get to watch, her skin glowing as it gets tanner. Archie loves seeing the tan lines of her bikini, loves tasting the salt on her skin, loves how she smiles _just a little bit_ whenever he can’t — _can’t,_ it’s physically impossible — stay too long without touching her, even if just to hold her hand.

That’s his favorite part of everything. All the times he itched to touch her in private but didn’t, because they were only supposed to kiss and act when they were in public, seems to be paid off by those moments alone with her, in that room with two beds and a view to the sea. And, _fuck_ , the sex was incredible, but he particularly likes the befores and afters too, of having her hand drawing circles on his chest and feeling her near.

On the day before they have to leave, they’re lying in bed like they did during the whole trip, just listening to each other breathing and exchanging soft caresses, and Archie thinks back to the day they watched _Casablanca_ and how someone seemed to have a hand around his throat the whole time. He didn’t fully understand it, then, what Rick meant with _We’ll always have Paris_ , but Archie thinks he gets it now. No matter what happens, he’ll always keep these days in his heart as his most cherished memory, along with the day they spent in Manhattan and the day she walked into his life and changed everything.

 

 

 

 

 

The next morning, Archie expects Reggie to show up at any minute and be their annoying, albeit endearing, companion on the journey back, but it doesn’t happen. Instead, Reggie texts him: 

**_yo dad, i don’t know how, but i ended up in bed with some local blondie and dude, she wants me to have breakfast. i know. but it’s free breakfast, so i said yes. gonna catch a bus later._ **

He stares at the message and reads it out loud to Veronica, who’s sitting next to him in shotgun.

 ** _u ‘don’t know how’?_** Archie writes back.

“Tell him we’ll miss him,” Veronica remarks, unbothered, as she files one nail. Archie looks over at her. She’s looking like a model from another era, with a yellow bandana folded into a headband, knotted into a bow at the top of her head, and round sunglasses. He raises an eyebrow, and she glances at him, with an all-too-innocent smile on her lips. “Very much.”

Archie snorts and can’t help but lean in to kiss her, right in the middle of her faux-sweet smile.

 

 

 

 

 

The drive back to Riverdale is quieter without Reggie around, but Archie doesn’t mind, at all. 

The Firebird’s top is down for most of the drive, and it’s nice to feel the sun and wind on their faces. Archie entertains her with stories about road trips he took with his dad when he was a child, enjoying the sound of her little giggles and her fingertips threading the hair on the back of his head.

They alternate between comfortable silence and long conversations. She’s not one to sleep on the road, always attentive to the details of the landscape and cars passing by. When they stop for lunch at a rest stop, she doesn’t order fries, but eats half of his plate, something that he’s used to after _fake dating_ her all these months.

When they’re back on the road, Veronica checks the cassette tapes that were in the glove compartment. Archie put them there because he didn’t buy a cassette tape to aux cable for the car — something that made Reggie annoyed during their drive to the Cape, _“I knew I shouldn’t have fixed this car without putting in a new, dope stereo, Andrews”_. She goes through the labels, all in Fred’s teenage handwriting, and reminisces on how _romantic_ things must have been in other eras.

“That’s my favorite.” Archie shows her one labeled **_VOLUME 7_** in a thick, red marker. “When my dad first showed it to me, I listened to it a thousand times.”

Veronica smiles softly and inserts the tape. It’s a mixtape that his dad made years ago, full of hits from the late eighties and early nineties. He doesn’t expect Veronica to know any of them, but it turns out that she does, singing softly to the lyrics of Billy Idol, Chris de Burgh, and U2.

It’s one of those moments so quiet, so _simple_ , and yet something he will remember for the rest of his life: Ronnie with her feet up on the dashboard, her toenails painted in a dark shade of brown, the wind blowing wisps of raven hair away from her face, as Bono Vox sings _I have kissed honey lips, felt the healing of fingertips that burn like the fire of this burning desire_.

 

 

 

 

 

The sky is getting greyer as they approach Riverdale, and Archie decides to lift the hood up before the first drops of rain fall onto their heads. There’s something bothering Archie’s chest, some sort of nostalgia that he felt when they were back from Manhattan, as well — after sleeping and waking up next to her all week, he’s not sure how he’ll settle in bed again, without her. 

The parking spot right in front of the Pembrooke is occupied, so Archie has to stop a little further down the road. “I’ll help carry your bags,” he says, unbuckling his seatbelt and turning off the car. The windshield wiper stops halfway, and the raindrops smear the glass, reflecting the streetlights.

“Okay,” Veronica says and glances over at him. She’s wearing his sweatshirt on top of her outfit, her hair is messy in the headband after all the wind, and her lipstick is already worn off. Archie doesn’t know if he’s projecting, but she looks a little sad, the corners of her mouth turned down. He reaches out to cup her face.

“I’m— I know we’ll see each other tomorrow morning,” Archie says, feeling his cheeks warm up, skimming his fingers over her jaw, “but it already feels like forever.”

Veronica wraps her hand around his wrist and smiles, her eyes going down from his eyes to his mouth. Archie wets his lips instinctively. She leans in, then, taking a deep breath before kissing him. They haven’t really kissed since this morning, nothing but small pecks at the gas station, and just feeling her lips against his makes his muscles tense up.

“This week was perfect,” she whispers against his mouth, and Archie kisses her again, fingertips on the back of her head, using his hold to deepen their kiss. When their tongues touch, a whimper escapes her, and Archie pulls her closer, internally condemning the gearstick and the emergency brake between them that don’t allow their bodies to come together.

“Ronnie,” he says, a sigh more than anything else, and she seems to understand whatever it means, because she breaks the kiss only to unbuckle her own seatbelt and swing her leg so she can straddle him, between his chest and the steering wheel. “Fuck,” he swears when he grabs her hips and pulls her down, her core against his jeans.

“We have to be quick,” she pants, rocking against him until he grows harder and harder, straining his jeans. She kisses him again, a hand going down between their bodies, flat against his chest and abdomen. Archie has both hands on her ass, which is uncovered since her skirt is hiked up, enjoying the feel of her flesh on his palms. Archie’s mouth leaves hers so he can kiss down her neck, and she tilts her head back to give him access. He breathes her in and sucks on the sensitive skin of her neck, making her moan, sending all of his blood down his body.

“Are you sure we should do this here?” he asks with a smile, pulling his own sweatshirt up and off her body. The shirt she’s wearing underneath has buttons, and Veronica quickly works on the ones at the top until the shirt is half-opened and he can look directly at her breasts in the lacey bra. “Holy shit.”

She opens the button of his jeans too, not wasting any time before slipping her hand into his pants and pressing his length over his underwear, making him groan. “Come on, lover boy.” She moves her hand as he moves her bra to the side, revealing her breast and one hard nipple that he immediately puts his mouth on. “That’s it.”

“You’re so fucking hot,” he murmurs, pulsing in her hand. When he touches her under her skirt, he feels the wet fabric of her panties. She bucks her hips when pulls her underwear to the side so he can properly touch her, and her back hits the horn, the sudden loud sound making them jump.

They look at each other with wide eyes, freezing their movements. Archie doesn’t even _breathe_ , wondering what he’s going to do if someone looks out their window. Or if the doorman at the Pembrooke decides to check what’s going on and catches them _like this_ , with their hands full (quite literally). But after a few seconds, nothing happens, and Veronica cracks first, hiding her head on his shoulder and laughing quietly.

“Maybe we shouldn’t—” Archie starts, laughing too, but Veronica presses him harder, interrupting all of his thoughts.

“Oh, no, no, no,” she says, smiling against his ear and kissing him lightly and then a little lower towards his neck, grazing her teeth on his skin. “Don’t you dare stop.”

Archie is helpless underneath her, so he just does what she silently asks him to and puts his fingers on her again. He circles her clit with his thumb until she’s panting, and when she’s digging her nails into his shoulders and asking for God, he inserts two fingers, feeling her walls clenching. “Is that what you want?”

Her mouth hangs open, and Archie licks the skin between her collarbone. “You know that I want much more,” she whispers, and Archie lets himself get lost in the taste of her skin and the feeling of her, when she reaches out for her bag in the passenger seat. He stops touching her, removing his fingers when she gets a condom, lifting up her knees so he can slide his jeans and boxers down his thighs.

She rolls on the condom, pumping his length with both of her hands until he’s throwing his head back. He holds her by the hips and pulls her down, sliding into her. Her moan is loud, and he digs his fingers into her skin. “Ronnie,” he groans, again and again, as she rides him slowly. He feels himself so deep inside of her, all the nerves in his body electrified with desire.

“You wanna know something?” she whispers as she rocks against him, and he helps her as he can, pushing and pulling her on top of him, their movements getting faster. “When I saw you working on this car, that day I took you to the party? You looked so damn sexy,” she says, kissing him. Archie wishes they were in a bed, so he could turn them over and have more space to move. He would put his mouth on her and lick her until she was screaming his name. “I wanted you so much.”

“Fuck, Ronnie.” Archie feels his abdomen stiffen, all his muscles tightening. He remembers it too, how she looked like a fucking goddess when she showed up at his garage door, how he replayed that moment in his head over and over again, always trying to convince himself that it meant nothing. He places a hand between their bodies so he can touch her clit again and help her get there, because he’s so close. He might come at any time now, feeling groggy with the heavy air around them, their hot breaths fogging up the windows. “Babe, come for me. Please, I need—”

Maybe his desperation gets to her, because she does what he asks her to. She contracts all around him, slowly, and then hard, grabbing his hair and pulling him into a burning kiss that rips a groan all the way up his spine as he comes too, quivering.

“My God,” he whispers after a few seconds, peppering kisses on her collarbone and neck.

“Told you we’d take this car to lover’s lane,” she says, still breathless, leaning in to kiss him on the mouth.

“Didn’t know that was in front of your building,” Archie says, and if he wasn’t sweating and _still_ pulsing inside her, he’d probably feel his cheeks warming up. But in the current situation, he just smiles against her lips. “We could get arrested for this.”

She giggles. “Worth it.”

 

 

 

 

 

It _is_ worth it, but it also makes it even more difficult to say goodbye. They laugh quietly as they clean up as well as they can with the tissues Veronica carries around, and she slides back into his sweatshirt with no intention to give it back to him. The car windows are still sweating once she texts Smithers to come out and help with the bags. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow, lover boy,” she says, dreamingly, leaning in so she can kiss Archie one more time, and then once more. She nips his bottom lip, until there’s a gentle knock on the passenger’s window, followed by Smithers clearing his throat.

The drive back to Elm Street is short. His dad and Vegas are waiting at the door when Archie slides the Firebird back into the garage. Archie smiles at the sight but soon feels slightly guilty for his previous shenanigans — he’s pretty sure that Fred wasn’t expecting him to come back home smelling like sex, with dirty tissues and a discarded condom in some paper bag thrown in the backseat.

Still, he puts on his best _good guy_ face when he comes out the car, running a hand through his hair to disguise the mess Veronica made with her fingers. Vegas immediately runs to him, greeting him enthusiastically, with two paws on his stomach and a wagging tail. “Hey, Vegas. Yeah, I missed you too, bud!”

“Hi, son,” Fred says, and Archie knows he doesn’t imagine the way his dad drinks in how rumpled he looks. “How was the Cape?”

“Oh, it was great,” Archie scratches behind Vegas’s ears, glad the dog is not allowing him to hug his father yet. “I’m kinda, uh, tired from the road, so I’ll take a shower and then we can—”

“Yeah, yeah,” Fred chuckles, shaking his head a little bit, “take your time, Casanova. I’ll get some ointment for you to put on that hickey.”

Archie’s face definitely goes redder than his hair. “It’s not a—”

“Oh, of course not. Those mosquitos by the beach.” Fred keeps on shaking his head, laughing knowingly. Archie raises his eyebrows, surprised but grateful by the direction of the conversation. “They’re terrible.”

 

 

 

 

 

He spends the rest of the evening eating pizza with his dad, sneaking sausage to Vegas, and telling some of the tales from the trip. 

Coming back to his room at bedtime, he feels like a completely different person from the past few months — it’s like the week before the trip never happened, like whatever was _fake_ between him and Ronnie never happened, like there was never any doubt or distance. Like no time had passed between the day they first kissed in a closet at Cheryl’s and now.

He tries — and fails — to drift off to sleep. In a week, he got so used to Veronica cuddled up against his left side, her face buried in his neck. It feels like a million years since they’ve seen each other, since she kissed him in his car and said goodbye, and Archie isn’t sure how he’ll manage to ever sleep again without her now that he knows what it feels like.

Sighing, he grabs his phone, defeated, and opens their chat. It’s past midnight, and she’s probably asleep already, but he can’t help but text her.

**_missing u_ **

To his surprise, it doesn’t take long for the three little dots to appear, signaling that she’s typing. Archie bites his lower lip to suppress a smile when she sends him a broken heart and a sad-face emoji.

Maybe she misses him too, and that has to be enough right now.

 

 

 

 

 

Monday morning comes, sooner rather than later, and Archie jumps out of bed. It’s his first day back at school after the break, and the first day he’ll get to be with Veronica officially. Well, _sort of_ officially. 

Archie sends Ronnie a quick _good morning_ text and says he’ll be getting the coffee. Then, he proceeds to shower and put ointment on the hickey on his neck, smiling a little as he remembers _how_ it got there.

He’s half-way through eating his plate of eggs and bacon when the doorbell rings. Vegas runs curiously to the front door, and Archie and Fred exchange glances, silently arguing about who’s going to get up. He loses when his dad looks back down at the newspaper and doesn’t move.

Archie frowns when he sees her through the door glass — blonde ponytail and a light pink sweater. It’s not a strange sign, Betty on his front porch. What _is_ strange is how her fists are curled up around her backpack straps and how there are dark circles under her eyes.

“Hey,” she greets with a small smile. She also pats Vegas on the head, but her attention is soon back to Archie. The labrador runs back to the kitchen, satisfied with the acknowledgment. “So many new freckles.”

Archie chuckles. Last time he saw Betty was at the dance, and he was _pretty sure_ he spotted Reggie twirling her around on the dancefloor, the baby blue of her dress a blur around her legs. “Hi, Betty. How was your holiday?”

Her fists tighten around the straps even more. “Tiring,” she breathes out. Archie frowns again, studying her face. “Can you— Are you driving to school? Can you give me a ride?”

Archie nods. “Yeah, sure. I just need to finish up breakf—”

He never gets to finish breakfast, or the sentence, even — Betty seems to repress a sob and looks up with green, watering eyes. Archie feels his eyes widen, not sure what to do when she bursts into tears.

Archie looks around and back at her. After a couple of seconds spent _panicking_ , he understands that she’s probably there to be _comforted_ and reaches out, pulling her into a hug. “Betty…” he says, uncertainly, feeling her sob against his chest.

“We broke up,” she gasps between tears. Archie’s eyes widen again, taken aback, but he makes sure to not loosen his grip on his oldest friend. His heartbeat quickens, though — because _how?_ “Juggie and I, we—”

“Hey, shh.” Archie presses her head firmer against his chest. He lets Betty cry even though he hates it, and he hates how he’s overcome with the weirdest feeling — some _protective_ instinct. He feels suddenly angry with Jughead but also worried about him, which gets him angry with _Betty_ , even though he can’t be — not when she’s crying in his arms like _this_. He takes a deep breath, gently touching her hair. “It’s going— It’s going to be okay. You guys will work this out.”

“No,” she shakes her head, and her tearful gasps become sobs again, “no, I don’t—”

“Shh,” Archie soothes again, clenching his jaw. He lets her cry for what seems like a long time.

 

 

 

 

 

Eventually, Fred comes to the front door to see what’s going on, but luckily Betty has found some composure again. Her whole face is red, especially her eyes and the tip of her nose, but she greets Archie’s dad with her best smile. Fred looks worried, but Archie manages to communicate with him silently before he asks anything.

On their way to school, sitting by his side in the Firebird she convinced Reggie to fix, Betty tells him what happened in a soft, sad voice that Archie hates to hear. But she’s calmer now, so that’s something.

She explains that just yesterday, after yet _another_ fight, she and Jughead reached an agreement that things just weren’t working out between them anymore and decided to end things and maybe remain friends — however, it still hurts too much, right now.

Archie can’t help but feel a little guilty that he came back _so happy_ while his two best friends are going through a bad time, so he just listens and makes sure to talk only when Betty pauses long enough.

“Ever since his dad got arrested and he had to move, we’ve been— we’ve gone through _so much_. I thought that we’d be able to get through it all, you know. My parents, the distance, I don’t—" he swallows hard.

Archie glances at her, a permanent crease between his eyebrows. “Maybe… Maybe it’s temporary? I mean, you guys love each other. I know you do.”

He _knows_. He’s seen it all play out, and even if it surprised him back then, it also made all the sense in the world.

“I do love him,” Betty nods, and Archie watches as she uncurls her fingers from tight fists, spreading them out on her lap, “but that’s not all that is, you know? Love is just a tiny little portion. The compromise—” She sighs. “It doesn’t matter how much we love each other if he doesn’t want to go to the places I want to be at, and if he doesn’t want me at the places he’s at. He promised things wouldn’t change between us, but they did.”

Archie looks at the road, unsure of what to say, but somehow understanding. He’s been a firm believer of the _love conquers all_ philosophy, until the day he hugged his mom at the Chicago O’Hare airport and realized that she was never coming back to their family.

They’re almost at school, and the sky is still grey from the rain the night before. Betty stays quiet for a long time before she tilts her head and glances at him. “He misses you, you know?”

Archie is confused for a small moment. “Who—”

“Juggie. He needs you around, Arch. I know you guys haven’t seen each other all that much ever since everything went down, and I don’t know, maybe that’s why… Maybe it’s one of the reasons why he feels like the Northside isn’t part of his life, anymore.”

Archie clenches his jaw, feeling what Betty just said settle like a stone, deep into his stomach. He _gets_ what she means, but Archie also kept his distance because he _honestly_ thought the two of them didn’t need him anymore.

It feels a bit stupid, now.

“I’ll reach out,” Archie says and senses Betty’s muscles loosening up. “I miss him too. It’s okay if I don’t take sides, right?”

She giggles. It’s a little sad, but it’s a start. “You shouldn’t. _Three musketeers_ ,” she says, raising three fingers in the air, like they did when they were children after a particularly interesting adventure.

Archie follows her lead, raising his fingers as he laughs. “Three musketeers.”

 

 

 

 

 

Once they get to school, Betty says she’ll wash her face and catch up with him later. Archie takes a deep breath when she leaves. This morning took a complete turn of direction, and nothing went the way he expected. He scratches the back of his neck, a small headache forming behind his eyes, probably from the lack of caffeine.

 _Fuck_. Archie remembers, then, that he promised to get coffee for him and Veronica, so they could have their little tradition at the courtyard., But with Betty showing up… _Fuck._

He checks his phone for the first time since early in the morning. There are three missed texts from Ronnie: a sun emoji, an **_i’m at the courtyard!_** and the third one almost twenty-five minutes later. **_archiekins?_**

Archie sighs. It’s probably better to show up empty-handed than with crappy coffee from the cafeteria.

He makes his way into school, knowing that, at this hour, Veronica has probably given up on waiting for him at the courtyard and is already by her locker. His guess is correct. He finds her very quickly, and she looks amazing with her tanned skin and her hair falling in loose waves down her shoulders. Archie feels his heart tighten, because it might be dumb, since it’s been less than a day, but he _really_ missed her. Even more so, now that all this shitty stuff is happening with people he cares about.

The sight of Veronica soothes him, brings him back to a bubble of great things. He smiles softly and approaches her. “Ronnie, hey,” Archie calls, reaching out to place a hand on her lower back. “I’m sorry I’m late.”

“Hey!” She turns around, frowning a bit when she sees him, possibly catching the look on his face. “You didn’t see my texts, so I was worried.”

“I’m sorry,” he says again, looking carefully at her face like it’s completely new to him, at how her expressions soften as she drinks in his own. He tucks her hair behind her ear. “I didn’t get coffee too. I suck.”

She smiles softly, reaching out a hand to touch his face, a touch he’s been craving ever since last night. He wants to kiss her and hold her, but somehow this is new territory — it feels weird to just _delve_ into it without discussing it first. This is school, Riverdale, and this is _real_. Archie doesn’t know exactly where the line is, or if there even _is_ a line, now that they’re back. “What happened?”

“I was with Betty,” Archie says, honestly, both his hands at Veronica’s waist now. A delicate crease appears between her eyebrows. “She needed to talk. I—” He shakes his head. “She and Jughead broke up. I don’t know.”

Veronica’s hand drops from his face, and she rests it on his wrist. “Oh.”

“Yeah,” Archie wets his lips, taking her hand in his, “I didn’t even check my phone, because she started crying. She asked me to drive her here, so I did.”

Veronica is silent for a moment as Archie entwines his fingers with hers, stroking his thumb across her knuckles, looking down at their hands together. She heaves out a heavy breath. “Wow, that’s— poor B,” she says, not really looking at Archie’s face anymore, but he knows that she means it. “Is she okay with you telling me this?”

He pauses. “Yeah. I mean, I didn’t think about it. Just thought you should know.” Archie shrugs and then tries pulling her a little closer by the hand until their hips align. The hand still on her waist searches for the warm skin under her shirt. Veronica looks at him, almost as if startled by his touch. “Am I forgiven for forgetting coffee?” he asks, with a smile, wondering when, or if, she’s going to kiss him.

Veronica looks at him beneath her thick lashes, and her eyes are deep brown, big and soft. “Of course, you are,” she says in a quiet voice, sounding almost sad. Archie frowns, asking himself why for a second before she tiptoes to reach him, pressing her lips against his.

It’s a gentle kiss, very different from the ones they shared only yesterday in his car, or throughout the whole trip. Archie cherishes it anyway, inhaling so he can take in her scent, welcoming him back home.

His hand is heavier on her skin, fingertips pressing into her waist, and Veronica runs her fingers through the hair on the back of his head before letting go. But the way she doesn’t deepen the kiss and the look on her face when they open their eyes… It’s all very _strange_.

“Is everything okay?”

“Yes,” she offers him a tiny smile and wipes the lipstick from the corner of his lips like she always does, “I’ll try to find Betty.”

 

 

 

 

 

Archie only sees the girls again during lunch break. Veronica is sitting beside Betty, across from Kevin. Moose isn’t around, for some reason, so Archie takes the seat next to Kevin. Betty looks less teary than this morning, but the pink flush around her eyes doesn’t hide that she’s been crying.

“I’m so conflicted,” Kevin says, glancing at Archie, once he sits down. Veronica also throws him a quick look but soon turns her attention back to their friend, her hand making circles on Betty’s back. “I thought it was weird when you two started, but after that—”

Veronica shakes her head, interrupting Kevin before he says anything he shouldn’t. “Listen, breaking up sucks, but you’re going to get through it, B,” Veronica says, firmly, tilting her chin up. Archie smiles softly at her determination, at how supportive she is of Betty in that moment. “And it’s _Jughead Jones._ I mean…” Kevin snorts, and Betty grimaces. “You’ll find someone else in no time, sweetie.”

“It just feels so… empty, I don’t know.” Betty heaves out a breath, looking even sadder than before. Kevin pouts. Veronica continues to rub Betty’s back. “ _Ugh_ , you guys just came back from Spring Break. I’m such a buzzkill. I’m sorry.”

Archie reaches out a hand and places it on top of Betty’s, for support. “We’re here for you,” he reaffirms, slightly squeezing her fingers. He feels Veronica’s gaze on him and glances over at her, their eyes meeting. Hers are as gloomy as they were back in the hallway this morning, but she gives him the smallest of smiles, too.

“One-hundred percent.” Kevin nods, as Archie lets go of Betty’s hand. There’s a beat of silence before Kevin continues, “But, _can_ we talk about Spring Break? Someone told me Reggie dared Brad Jacobs to convince some local girls that he was Marc Jacobs’s nephew, and it looks like it worked.”

The story is dumb, but at least it makes Betty laugh.

 

 

 

 

 

He has lab in the afternoon, and Veronica has a free period, so they say goodbye after lunch. Archie thinks about stealing a moment alone with her — this is _so_ not what he envisioned for their first real-Monday — but Ronnie gets up quickly when the bell rings, kissing Betty’s head and blowing a collective kiss to Archie and Kevin, saying that she has to run for some reason. 

He watches her leave, a bit confused, but fathoms that it’s better if he calls her after school and makes plans to meet, that way they can be together without having to shove it in anyone’s face.

Archie goes to lab and then hits the gym. The holiday extravaganza is over, and he needs to be in good shape if he wants to win the next Friday's football game. He’s already excited for it — a rematch, Ronnie cheering him on, having an actual Mallmart date after the game…

Jason, Moose, and some of the other Bulldogs are at the gym too, making his workout more fun. After showering, Archie gives Moose a ride. When he’s finally home, the sky is already getting darker, and it’s raining again, just a light drizzle.

The lights in his house are out, which means his dad still isn’t home yet. Archie is about to park the Firebird in the garage when he notices that someone is sitting on his front porch. It doesn’t take him long to realize that it’s Veronica.

He quickly pulls over, turning off the car, and runs up the steps so he can meet her, a huge smile on his face. His plans were to _immediately_ text her when he got home. Veronica gets up, her arms crossed over her chest.

“Hey!” Archie greets, leaning in for a quick kiss. “How long have you been here?”

“Not long.” She smiles softly, wetting her lips. “I— your dad isn’t home, so I figured I’d wait outside.”

Archie puts his hands on her waist. After waiting the whole day, it feels _crucial_ that they touch, now. “There’s a key under the plant vase, if you ever want to let yourself in.” He tries to bring her closer by the waist but finds some resistance. His forehead creases and he looks down at her face, noticing her downcast eyes. “Hey. You okay?”

Veronica looks up, and it’s the same look from the hallway this morning — her eyes soft, big, and a little sad. She opens her mouth, hesitantly, and Archie feels something in his throat when she places her hands on his forearms.

“We don’t have to do this, Archie,” she breathes out. Archie’s frown deepens. When she takes a step back from his embrace, a bad feeling goes up his spine.

“What are you talking about?”

“Look,” she takes another step back and briefly looks to the side. The front porch is lit only by the streetlights, and they make shadows on her face. Archie feels his heart beating in his stomach, “the contract is over. We broke every single rule, and—” she stops. Why is she talking about the damn _contract_? “We don’t need to be together anymore.”

 _What?_ Is this the part where she tells him that they just needed to fulfill the agreement? That everything in the past week was just _pretend?_ That coming back from Spring Break they’d go their separate ways?

No, no, no, no. Archie can’t believe it. She wouldn’t. She wouldn’t play with him like this. She wouldn’t—

“Ronnie,” he breathes, aware that he sounds desperate.

“Archie, when we started this, we did it to help me move on from Chuck and to make sure that your feelings for Betty wouldn’t get in the way of her and Jughead,” Veronica says, her voice slightly higher pitched. His _feelings for Betty_? What the fuck was she talking about?! Archie searches her eyes frantically, but she’s not really looking back at him. “But now they’re not together anymore, so— I get it.”

“You _get it_?” Archie raises his eyebrows. “Veronica, you don’t underst—”

“I knew that sooner or later this would happen,” she cuts him off, looking up at him, her big brown eyes full of tears. “I just didn’t expect them to break up so soon. I thought I’d get to be with you for a little while before you’d have a chance with her, but—” she pauses, her voice clogged with tears. “I get it.”

Archie watches, dumbfounded, as a tear runs down her face. She chuckles, wiping it off quickly, and leaves him on his porch without another word. Archie allows his mouth to hang open. How could she be _so wrong_ about this? How could she not see that he’s in love with her? How is it possible that after everything, she still thinks this has anything to do with—

Archie heaves out a breath. This can’t be happening. This—

“Veronica!” he shouts, running down the steps after her, the drizzle cold on his skin. “Veronica!” He reaches out for her arm, making her turn around, her face wet from the tears that she allowed to fall. “You have to listen me!”

“Archie, please—”

“No, you _have_ to listen to me! Why would you think that I have feelings for Betty?!”

She shakes her head. Archie watches as she runs a hand through her hair and struggles to find an answer. “She’s the last one you wrote a song about, Archie. We started this because—”

“We started this because I didn’t want her to think that I had feelings for her, which I don’t! I never did! She’s _my friend_ , Ronnie,” he says, exasperated, his shirt starting to cling to his body as it gets wetter. “We started this because _you_ asked me to. You don’t have any idea how hard it was for me, to pretend to be in a relationship I _wanted_ for so fucking long,” he blurts out.

Veronica _finally_ stands still, as does the air around them. Elm Street is completely silent if not for their heavy breathing. She’s looking at him like she never did before, so open and vulnerable, and Archie doesn’t have another option but being completely honest.

“Because I wanted you, Veronica. From the first time I saw you— everyday. Even when I was with someone else. Even now, that you’re being nuts,” he says, and it makes her crack a smile that gets his heart fluttering as he realizes that he’s making her understand. “Even when I convinced myself that I was over you, all I ever did was want to be with you.”

“Archie—” she murmurs, her hair getting straighter, damp from the light rain.

“Yes, there were songs for other girls that I wrote in the spur of a moment or whatever. You have to know that I was just trying and _trying_ not to be in love with you. But I am, Ronnie. I’m so in love with you.” Archie takes a step forward, cupping her face with one of his hands. He feels her relax into this touch. “I love you, Veronica. You have to believe me.”

Veronica takes another step closer to him, reaching out a hand to touch his face, brushing his damp hair off his forehead. Archie swallows hard, waiting for her to say something. He feels so relieved after pouring his heart out and so scared, at the same time, all his senses heightened.

“I believe you,” she says. Archie looks down with expectant eyes, the world around them not mattering anymore. Not a sound, not a movement, not a bit. “I believe you,” she repeats, smiling, stroking his face. “I love you too, Archie Andrews.”

There’s a small smile that lingers after she says that, and then she looks deep into his eyes. Archie breathes in slowly and then holds his breath. His heart is thumping so loud in his chest that he can hear it echoing in his ears.

Archie smiles, _beams_ , and brings her closer to him, pulling her to a kiss. She wraps her hands around his neck and kisses him, parting her mouth, moving her tongue against his in perfect rhythm. She’s kissing him, in the middle of his street, damp skin getting warmer, heartbeats synchronizing with heavier raindrops. She’s kissing him, and she loves him.

It feels like living inside a song.

No, it definitely feels better than that.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Hey,” Archie greets as he walks into Pop’s. “Sorry I’m late.”

“Archie Andrews, as I live and breathe,” Jughead says with a smile, closing his worn-out MacBook, stickers adorning its cover. He’s wearing a typical S-printed tee, beanie resting on the table. “Of all the gin joints—”

“Oh, _Casablanca_ ,” Archie wiggles his eyebrows, making Jughead frown, “great movie.”

“Who knew it would take dating Veronica Lodge to get you past animations and martial arts,” Jughead teases, as he waves his empty coffee cup at the waitress, asking for a refill. Archie chuckles, thinking about Veronica for a moment, about saying goodbye to her just a few minutes ago, whispering _see you later_ into her kiss. “How are things with the Park Avenue princess?”

“Things are good,” Archie says. It’s been two months since he and Veronica confessed their feelings and decided to be together _for real_ , and things have never been better. It’s so much easier to get through life knowing that he’s never, ever going to need to try to get over Veronica Lodge again. Knowing that she loves him, that she exists and that she’s within his reach. “Everything’s good. How are things with… Toni?”

Jughead’s eyebrows travel towards his hairline. He clears his throat when the waitress comes to refill his coffee and asks if Archie wants to order anything. He goes for a strawberry milkshake, quietly laughing to himself at the face Jughead makes. It’s also been two months since he began making amends with his childhood best friend, as promised to Betty. It wasn’t easy, at first. Jughead was rightfully angry at Archie for staying away when he needed him the most, but, little by little, over many nights and many burgers, things have gotten better.

“Let’s say they _aren’t_.” Jughead sighs. Turns out that, about a month after breaking up with Betty, Jughead ended up having a thing with a pink-haired girl from Southside High, who helped him with the school newspaper. “I’m not what she’s looking for. And, to be honest, I’m still— you know, Betty.”

“I get it.” Archie nods, drumming his fingers on the table. “And I’ve been thinking— would you consider going to prom? It’s right around the corner, and I’m pretty sure that she doesn’t have a date yet. I mean, I know it’s in Riverdale High and all, but…”

Jughead nods, slowly. “Well, as long as you keep your Bulldogs in control,” he teases, huffing a laugh before taking a sip of his coffee. Archie rolls his eyes, jokingly. “I’ll think about it.”

They quickly change the subject to something else, which then flows to something else entirely, that easy, never-ending conversation that always permeated their friendship. Archie is glad that things between them weren’t completely ruined and that they’re giving their friendship another shot. A set of train tracks wasn’t enough to keep them apart.

 

 

 

 

 

Later that day, Archie is sitting on his couch with Vegas, who's chewing on a toy by his feet, and idly playing games on his phone instead of doing homework, when movement makes Vegas get up and trot to the door.  Archie sets his phone down, turning his head to watch his dad come in the house after his long workday, carrying grocery bags. 

“Son, hey,” Fred greets, dodging Vegas as he runs around his legs.

“Hi, Dad.” Archie leaves his phone on the coffee table, getting up to help his dad with the groceries. “Did we need more food?” He frowns, carrying the bags to the kitchen island.

“Yeah, yeah. For tomorrow. I’ve been meaning to talk to you,” Fred says, clearing up his throat a little, that look on his face that means he wants to have some _man-to-man_ talk.

“What’s up?”

“Son, I want you to meet Marcus,” Fred says, his voice soft, but firm.

Archie’s eyebrows immediately knit together. “But I’ve met Marcus.”

Fred wrinkles his forehead, looking at Archie as if he just said something endearing. “Yes, but I want you to _meet_ Marcus. Tomorrow, during dinner,” his dad explains. “You should invite Veronica, too.”

“Oh.” Archie stands, confused for a second, until it _clicks_. _“Oh.”_

“It’s been a while since I’ve… _connected_ with someone. Well, ever since your mom left. And I really hope you know that you are and always will be my priority, but I think—”

“Dad! Are you kidding me?” Archie feels a smile taking over his whole face. “This is _awesome_. Yeah, sure, I’ll be here, and I’ll invite Ronnie. She’ll love to come, I’m sure.”

“Okay.” Fred nods, a small smile clearly tugging at his lips, that way he often smiles when he’s emotional or proud of his son. Archie feels giddy, pure happiness bubbling up in his chest. “Okay, great. Tell her to be here around eight?”

 

 

 

 

 

When the doorbell rings, Archie runs to get it, but Vegas arrives first. He can’t see anyone through the window in the door, so he knows it must be Veronica, since she’s so small. Archie fixes his hair really quickly, and Vegas barks once. “Geez, calm down,” Archie tells his dog, before opening the door. 

“Hey! I got Magnolia cupcakes, for dessert,” she says in a chirpy voice, but Archie barely has time to take in how beautiful she looks before she shoves a white box in his hands and leans down to scratch Vegas’s ears. “Hi, handsome! Aren’t you a good boy?”

“It’s getting really hard to compete with him for your attention, huh?” Archie chuckles. Veronica looks up at him, her red lips curled up into a teasing grin.

“You’ve never had a chance,” she tells him, but then she’s standing up again and taking a step closer to him. Archie leans in to kiss her, something that he gets to do every single day now and never fails to take his breath away. “Is the guest of honor already here?” she asks, scraping her nails on the back of his head in a tender touch, making him smile. “I got rainbow cupcakes. Do you think it’s too much?”

 

 

 

 

 

Dinner with Marcus is great. He’s _so handsome_ — says Veronica — and in his late forties’ like Fred. It brings so much joy to Archie, to see his dad so comfortable with a partner. They seem to have a lot of things in common. Marcus was born in Centreville. He’s an architect, but he was also in a band back in high school. All his favorite music is also Fred’s favorite music and, consequently, Archie’s.

They eat Veronica’s cupcakes as dessert, and Archie has to look away (even though he ends up looking back again) as she licks rainbow frosting off her lower lip. Archie has to hold onto every shred of self-control not to kiss her breathless right there, in front of everyone.

“Since how long have you two been together?” Marcus asks when Veronica takes a napkin to wipe something off Archie’s lips. The question catches him a little off-guard since their story has been a little _weird_ , but Veronica, as usual, is on top of her game.

“February,” she says, placing one hand on top of Archie’s. He holds it, smiling a little to himself.

“But I’ve been carrying a torch for her since sophomore year,” he says, looking over at Veronica. It’s the exact words about their story that they agreed in the long-gone contract, and she probably notices it since she's giggling.

“So, you finally got the girl, huh?” Marcus jokes. Archie’s ears definitely go red, and Fred laughs a little, placing his arm on the backrest of his partner’s chair.

Veronica glances over at him and then back at Marcus. “Good things come to those who wait,” she says, batting her eyelashes at Archie. “Right, lover boy?”

Archie brings her hand to his lips and kisses it. He could probably say that he would’ve waited a lifetime for her, but he’s really glad that he didn't have to.

 

 

 

 

 

After dinner, his dad and Marcus stay in the kitchen to wash the dishes, and Archie and Veronica go up to his room, fingers intertwined. 

“I met up with Jug yesterday,” Archie says, as they enter his room, leaving the door open as instructed by his dad. The smallest of cracks, of course. “I _think_ he might go to prom.”

“He might?” Veronica asks. Archie sits on his bed and watches her as she takes off her shoes, blending in nicely with the bunch of boyish crap he accumulated over the years. His lava-lamp is on, and the room has a low, warm light all over it. Veronica’s skin looks like cinnamon under this light. He can see it on her exposed arms, on the stripe of skin between the crop top and the satin skirt she’s wearing. “Okay, I’m not supposed to say anything, but…”

Archie raises his eyebrows in curiosity.

“I was talking to Reggie today and he told me about, you know, his _OJP_ ,” she says nonchalantly, getting closer to his desk.

Archie frowns. “What does Reggie’s _Operation Junior Prom_ have to do with Jugh… _Oh_.”

“Yeah. He’s asking Betty to the dance.” Veronica bites her lower lip, fumbling with a pencil on Archie’s desk and stops in front of his window, peeping out curiously. “Speaking of which, did I ever tell you that you have a _seriously_ good view of Betty’s room, here? It’s honestly kind of creepy.”

Archie shrugs. He never thought of it like that — Betty’s room was always _just there_ , and he always just had access to it, like an extension of his own house. They had a whole signal code when they were little, and he was just used to her light on, in his peripheral vision.

“Did you ever witness anything _freaky_?” Veronica raises one eyebrow, and Archie’s jaw drops. “I don’t know, some sexy times?”

The perspective makes him _wince_. “Ronnie!”

“What?” she teases and then giggles like a little kid doing something mischievous. Archie laughs too, shaking his head in disbelief. _This girl._ “She’s about to be involved in a love triangle, so we just might.”

 _“No.”_ Archie reaches out for Veronica’s hand, pulling her to him until she’s standing in between his legs, his hands on her waist. She’s still laughing, her muscles tightening under his fingertips. Archie lets his hands go under her top, feeling the warmth on his palms, always overwhelmed with _how good_ it feels to touch her. “But since we’re here, maybe we could give _her_ a show.”

Veronica bites her smile and leans in for a kiss, running her hand through his hair and pushing him onto his back. “I love you,” she whispers when she breaks the kiss with a hint of teeth on his lower lip. “You know that?”

Archie kisses her again, deeper this time, because _yes_ , he knows. And God, he loves her too.

 

 

 

 

 

A couple of hours later, Archie’s face is buried in Veronica’s hair when a notification makes his phone buzz, vibrating his desk and startling him awake. He stirs, still half-asleep and reaches over to see who’s sending him a message. 

His eyes go wide.

It’s from Val.

 

 

 

 

 

_the end_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> awww it's over!! oh, my god! i swear, this fic wasn't supposed to be so long (81k words and a whole LAUV album) or to get so complicated, but it is what it is! a long ride full of writer block, pain, tears LOL but i also had so much fun writing this real "idiots to lovers" piece! i hope i didn't disappoint!
> 
> this ending, lol. for those who don't know, in the end of the TATBILB movie, one of the guys lara jean writes a letter to shows up unannounced after everything is settled with peter, so val's text is a nod to that. but we knooow that this means no treat for our varchie! also, lol, what are your theories? who's betty going to the prom with?? reggie or jughead?
> 
> yes, bi!fred rise! i didn't know if you guys had noticed all the hints throughout the fic that marcus wasn't exactly just his friend, but i'm really glad to give our captain fred some happy ending too!
> 
> i cannot thank you ENOUGH for all the support and patience. special thanks go to: my beta nic, who's been my girl through this and made it a lot better | AK (tuesdayschildd) who helped me through it all as well and whose support was everything!! | em and fran just for existing | milly, sathana, leah, fallon for writing me the best comments ever ever| and everyone else that read it, encouraged me, commented, sent messages and left their love. and pleeaase, let me know what you think of this last installment!
> 
> my inbox @andsmile is always open for everyone!
> 
> without further do, the playlist!
> 
>   * wake me - bleachers (song at the beginning and honestly, one of my varchie faves)
>   * falling in love - glimmer of blooms (sort of a morning soundtrack)
>   * lovers - anna of the north (from the original tatbilb soundtrack!)
>   * i still haven't found what i'm looking for - u2 (plays in the car in the ride back)
>   * i'm yours - jason mraz (josie and the girls sing this in the trip)
>   * everything all at once - local natives (just a weird, nice tune)
>   * drive all night - joan
> 



End file.
